As war rages on in Ukraine following Russian invasion, domestic airline IndiGo on Friday stated that it will operate 51% of the reparation flights under Indian government's 'Operation Ganga' to bring back the stranded Indian nationals by March 6, 2021.
Last Thursday, Russia had launched a military operation on Ukraine. gauging the situation, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has initiated 'Operation Ganga' to facilitate the return of Indian nationals, including students, stranded there.
IndiGo has conveyed that in order to support the government's efforts, it is operating the largest number of flights from February 28 to March 06, under Operation Ganga.
The airline will be operating 42 flights (completed + planned) bringing back over 9200 Indian citizens back to their homeland by Sunday (March 06), explained IndiGo in an official statement. The flights will operate from Budapest, Bucharest, Rzeszow, Suceawa, Kosice, and Warsaw
The airline is operating these flights with A321 aircraft. Some of these flights carried relief material on their outward journey to Budapest and Rzeszow, while bringing back evacuees on the return leg via Istanbul.
"We are humbled to fulfil our responsibility by operating more than 50% of the flights under Operation Ganga and contribute towards the repatriation efforts by the Indian Government. We have already operated 30 flights bringing back more than 6600 of our citizens till today," said Wolfgang Prock-Schauer, President and Chief Operating Officer, IndiGo.
"IndiGo remains committed to supporting the Government of India in its mission to evacuate Indian citizens from the crisis in Ukraine. We are proud to see our operations team stepping forward to respond to the critical humanitarian need of the hour, enabling the safe return of ourstranded citizens back to their families and homes. We will continue to contribute to the country in its time of need," he added.
Also read: What is Operation Ganga; all about the Ukraine evacuation mission