Centre puts 50% cap on domestic flight operations, to come into effect June 1

When domestic flights had resumed in India in May last year after a two-month-long break, the government had permitted the carriers to operate at 33 per cent of their pre-Covid domestic services.

Airlines can operate only 50 per cent of their pre-Covid domestic flights from June 1 instead of the 80 per cent permitted currently, the Civil Aviation Ministry said on Friday. The decision has been taken "in view of the sudden surge in the number of active Covid-19 cases across the country, decrease in passenger traffic and passenger load factor (occupancy rate)", the ministry said in an order. When the government resumed scheduled domestic flights in India on May 25 last year after a two-month-long break, the ministry had permitted the carriers to operate not more than 33 per cent of their pre-Covid domestic services.