Air India opens bookings for domestic flights 4 May
NEW DELHI : State-run carrier Air India today said it has started taking bookings for travel from May 4 on some select domestic routes starting 4th May, 2020. The select domestic routes include important metro cities like Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, and Bengaluru.
Despite the lockdown, many domestic air carriers started accepted bookings for travel date post April 14, barring Air India, which decided to not take any bookings till April end.
Air India has now come forward to announce the commencement of bookings for flights on May 4 and June 1 for domestic and international flights respectively.Budget air carrier Indigo had also earlier said that it is prepared to resume domestic operations ‘in a phased manner’ from 4th May.
The airline said it is, however, not taking any booking for domestic flights for travel till May 3, or the day the extended lockdown over the COVID-19 pandemic is scheduled to end. Air India has also stopped taking bookings for international flights till May 31.
“The situation is being constantly reviewed and we shall keep you updates,” Air India said on its website.
The airline has been sending its planes for cargo duties across the country and on international routes, such as to destinations in China, from where the novel coronavirus outbreak started in December and eventually turned into a pandemic.
An Air India B-787 aircraft left for China’s Guangzhou from Delhi this morning to pick up medical supplies, news agency ANI reported. On Wednesday, the airline said it carried 170 tonnes of COVID-19 related medical cargo from Shanghai and Hong Kong in one day.
“In the light of the ongoing global health concerns, we have currently stopped accepting bookings on all domestic flights for travel till May 3, 2020, and on all international flights for travel till May 31, 2020,” Air India said today.
“Bookings for select domestic flights for travel from May 4, 2020, and for international flights for travel from June 1, 2020 onwards are open,” it said. The country has been under a lockdown since March 25 to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.
The first phase of the lockdown was from March 25 to April 14. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on April 14 extended it till May 3. All domestic and international flights except cargo carriers have been grounded.
(With inputs from Agencies).
