Vande Bharat: AI to Run 36 Flights Between India & US From 11 July

In phase 4 of Vande Bharat, Air India will be operating 36 flights between India and US starting 11 July to 19 July

Air India opened its bookings for 300 flights from select destinations in USA, Canada, UK and Europe.

(Photo: Reuters)

Air India will be operating 36 flights between India and the US starting 11 July to 19 July, Air India said in a statement on Sunday, 5 July.

Tickets may be booked through Air India website only effective 20:00 hours (IST) on 6 July, equivalent to New York (EDT 1030 hrs of 6' July 2020), Chicago (CDT 0930 hrs of 6 July 2020) & San Francisco (PDT 0730 hrs of 6 July 2020), the company said in a statement.

The US government had on 22 June, restricted charter flights from India coming into the country stating that India was indulging in "unfair and discriminatory" practices that violate the aviation treaty between the two countries.

The US Transport Department had reportedly alleged that Air India Ltd, which was plying flights to repatriate citizens during the COVID-19 travel lockdown, was also selling tickets to the public.

Following this, the Ministry of Civil Aviation had on 23 June, said that it had received requests from several countries that their air carriers be allowed to participate in the transportation of passengers along the line being conducted by Air India under ‘Vande Bharat’ mission. The ministry added that it is considering establishing "bilateral bubbles" between such countries.

The fourth phase of the Vande Bharat mission started on 3 July and Air India is expected to operate 170 flights.

All scheduled international commercial flight services to and from India will remain suspended till 15 July, as announced the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Friday, 26 June.