Indicating that the current “air bubble” system of operation will continue, a note from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation today read: “In view of the merging global scenario… the situation is being watched closely in consultation with all stakeholders and an appropriate decision indicating the effective date of resumption of scheduled commercial international passenger services shall be notified in due course”.
Omicron surfaces as the devastating effects of the second wave, powered by the Delta variant of the virus, were subsiding.
Normal work had resumed in offices, malls and cinema halls had opened their doors, schools were going offline, domestic flights started operating at full capacity and even international flight situation was about to get back to normal.
On November 26, the government had announced the resumption of scheduled international commercial flights from December 15.
International commercial flight operations were on freeze for more than 20 months and passenger flights were operating under a bubble arrangement — which involved two or more nations allowing flights into each other’s territories, subject to certain conditions.