Late Wednesday night Air India Express He tweeted saying: “The Vande Bharat Mission flights would continue to carry passengers on their flights from Saudi Arabia to India. The airline would not transport passengers from India to Saudi Arabia. ”
#FlyWithIX: Air India Express Vande Bharat Mission flights would continue to carry passengers on their flights from… https://t.co/3lgBHIJS1C
– Air India Express (@FlyWithIX) 1600874377000
This is a partial relaxation of the Saudi Arabian General Civil Aviation Authority (GACA) order issued Tuesday that suspended all travel to and from the hotspots of the corona outbreak in India, Brazil and Argentina. The temporary restriction applies to anyone who has been in these countries 14 days before the expected date of entry into Saudi Arabia and also to general aviation (charter flights and private jets). The only exception, according to the GACA order, are “passengers who have official government invitations.”
With India reporting nearly a lakh of corona cases a day, travel restrictions are coming fast now. Even after partial relaxation, the Saudi move has airlines worried that more countries may impose similar restrictions on people flying from India.
Last Sunday (September 20), Hong Kong asked Air India for the second time not to operate flights there for two weeks until October 3. The reason is that a significant number of passengers from India tested positive upon arrival in Hong Kong. Last month, Hong Kong also banned Air India flights for two weeks after 11 passengers who flew there from Delhi on August 14 tested positive upon arrival. Cathay Pacific does not operate in India during the pandemic.
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Dubai aviation authorities had also decided to suspend AI Express operations to the city last week for 15 days after the low-cost carrier carried passengers twice with positive reports of Covid from India. Following an apology from AI Express and assurance that the same will not happen again, the Dubai Civil Aviation Authority revoked this suspension.
As of September 17, certain categories of travelers from India must undergo Covid testing before departing for Singapore as a negative report will be required to enter the city-state. Singapore’s Ministry of Health made this decision earlier this month due to the “resurgence of infections in India” and the city-state saw “a significant number of imported cases with a history of recent travel to India.”
“To reduce the risk of importation of cases from India, travelers who are not Singapore citizens or permanent residents and who have a recent travel history to India in the last 14 days prior to entry will need to take a chain reaction from the Covid-19 polymerase (PCR) within 72 hours prior to departure. Travelers will be required to submit a valid negative COVID-19 test result as a condition of approval to enter Singapore … from September 17, 2020 00:00 AM, and will apply in addition to the existing requirements of a stay at home 14-day notice (SHN) at SHN special facilities and a negative COVID-19 test prior to the end of your SHN, ”the Singapore Ministry of Health website said in an update titled“ Require pre-departure testing (PDT) for Travelers from India ”on 9 September.
“We have been closely monitoring the Covid-19 situation in India. There have been reports of a resurgence of infections in India. Singapore has also seen a significant number of imported cases with a history of recent travel to India, ”he added.
Countries like Germany screen people arriving from “high risk” places like India for the flu upon arrival.
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