Domestic flights resume: More than 58,300 passengers flew on Day 1; 832 flights operated

A total of 58,318 passengers flew to their destinations on May 25, when India's domestic flight services resumed after a gap of two months. As many as 832 flights were operated on Monday.

Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said, "Airports are abuzz & passengers are back in air".

Airports are abuzz & passengers are back in air.

58,318 passengers flew to their destinations on 832 flights on the first day, 25th May till midnight.

Operations have started in Andhra Pradesh from today. These numbers are all set to soar higher.@PMOIndia @MoCA_GoI pic.twitter.com/eWB9KeS9W9

- Hardeep Singh Puri (@HardeepSPuri) May 26, 2020

Meanwhile, on Tuesday, domestic flight operations resumed in Andhra Pradesh. A SpiceJet flight from Bengaluru landed in Gannavaram of Krishna district. Puri tweeted, "Operations have started in Andhra Pradesh from today. These numbers are all set to soar higher".

Moreover, West Bengal will restart flight operation on May 28, Thursday.

The first flight on Monday took off from Delhi for Pune at 4.45 am under strict regulations as recommended by civil aviation authorities. The first flight from Mumbai was to Patna at 6.45 am.

Yesterday, the aviation ministry also permitted chartered flights to resume their operations.

The ministry said "non-scheduled and private operators" of fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters and micro-light aircraft can resume their domestic flights from May 25 onwards.

The government last week announced the resumption of domestic flight services from May under specific rules and guidelines. It asked airlines to cap ticket pricing, ensure that passengers wear face masks, and that no food is served onboard planes. The ministry also asked travellers to declare that they are fit to fly through the Aarogya Setu app or by filling up of a self-declaration form.

All scheduled commercial flights were suspended in the country since March 25, when India went under its first nationwide-lockdown.

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