International lights begin on December 15, but new Covid fears prompt a ‘at-risk’ list

After a 21-month restriction, international scheduled commercial flights to and from India will restart on December 15, according to an order issued by the Ministry of Civil Aviation on Friday. While the change may lower costs on some high-volume routes, it comes at a time when foreign travel is facing increased uncertainty as a result of the new Covid-19 version.

The government has produced a list of ‘at-risk countries, and the nature of international scheduled flight resumes will be determined by whether or not a country is on the list.

South Africa, Brazil, Bangladesh, Botswana, China, Mauritius, New Zealand, Zimbabwe, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Israel are among the European countries represented.

Passengers arriving in India from the nations on this list, as published by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, may be subjected to further checks, including post-arrival testing.

Airlines will be authorised to operate flights to nations that are not on this ‘at-risk list based on full capacity rights set forth in bilateral air service agreements between India and the respective country. Airlines in countries on this list that have an air bubble agreement with India, such as the United Kingdom and European countries like Germany, the Netherlands, France, and others, have been allowed to increase capacity to 75% of pre-Covid levels, or at least seven times per week.

Finally, 50% of bilateral capacity entitlements have been allowed for ‘at-risk countries that do not have an air bubble agreement.

Travellers to nations like the United States, where a bilateral agreement with India states that airlines from both countries can operate unlimited flight frequencies, should expect lower costs for direct India-US flights ahead of the holiday season in December.

Similarly, airlines from both nations will be able to operate the full-capacity entitlement of 35 flights per week in Canada, while airlines from both countries will be able to mount a maximum capacity of 9,895 seats each week in Thailand, a popular tourist destination.