admin Indian airlines said on Tuesday that they were resuming limited commercial services to the Middle East in a bid to collect thousands of passengers stranded by war.
Millions of South Asian citizens live and work across the Middle East.
IndiGo said it would operate four return flights to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia as part of efforts to “progressively normalise” operations between the countries.
Air India Express said it would resume flights to and from the Omani capital Muscat from Tuesday.
But services to and from Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates remain suspended, the airlines said in a statement.
Budget carrier Akasa Air said it would operate select flights to Jeddah.
SpiceJet said it would operate four special flights from the UAE on March 3 to facilitate the return of Indian nationals stranded there following the sudden closure of airspace.
Stranded passengers wait near the IndiGo airlines ticketing desk at the Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. File/Agence France-Presse
The airline will operate these special services from Fujairah to three Indian cities – Delhi, Mumbai and Kochi – including two flights to Mumbai, to ensure that passengers are able to return home at the earliest.
In addition to these special services, SpiceJet will restore its scheduled flights between Fujairah and Delhi and between Fujairah and Mumbai starting March 4, helping normalise connectivity between the UAE and India.
About 357 flights were cancelled on Monday, though operations began gradually resuming by evening with stranded Indian aircraft returning home.
People from Karnataka return home
Several Kannadigas, who were stranded in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) following flight cancellations triggered by the Israel-Iran conflict, have also begun returning home, bringing relief to families in Karnataka.
Meanwhile, the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru on Tuesday set up a dedicated Help Desk at the kerbside of Terminal 2 to assist passengers amid ongoing disruptions to flight operations.
A flight that departed from Dubai on Monday night landed safely at Kempegowda International Airport near Devanahalli in Bengaluru Rural district in the wee hours of Tuesday. Among those who arrived were Karnataka Legislative Council member S.L. Bhojegowda and badminton star P.V. Sindhu.
Speaking to the media after his arrival, Bhojegowda said he had travelled to South Africa and was returning to Bengaluru via Dubai when the situation escalated.
“Only after reaching Dubai did I learn about the problem. Initially, there was a delay in departure. Later, we were informed that the flight had been cancelled. There was such a heavy rush at Dubai airport that there was hardly any space,” he said.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken to multiple Middle East leaders, including the leaders of Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Jordan, in which he thanked them for “taking care of the Indian community”, in posts on social media.
Modi said on Monday he had also spoken to his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu, in which he “conveyed India’s concerns over recent developments and emphasised the safety of civilians as a priority”.
Agencies
