Explore ways to felicitate armed forces: Minister to airlines
Civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu on Tuesday urged airlines to explore ways to acknowledge the contributions of the armed forces during Operation Sindoor, officials aware of the matter said.
Naidu made the suggestion during a review meeting he chaired with airlines and senior aviation officials. The meeting comes a day after Airports Authority of India on Monday announced the resumption of civilian flight operations at 32 airports across northern and western India, but temporarily suspended flight operations north of Delhi after drones were spotted above some border districts.
'The minister, during the discussion, urged airlines to explore ways of acknowledging the contributions of the armed forces, such as through in-flight announcements,' an official close to the development said on condition of anonymity.
'Chaired a review meeting with all airlines and senior officials,' Naidu said in a post on X. 'With the NOTAM ending on May 15, I suggested that airlines resume their normal schedules from the 15th across all 32 airports for which the NOTAM was issued. All airlines responded positively to this suggestion.'
The meeting, held at the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA), included representatives from all Indian airlines, the Airports Authority of India (AAI), aviation secretary Samir Kumar Sinha, Faiz Ahmed Kidwai, Director General of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), and Videh Kumar Jaipuriar, chief executive officer (CEO) of Delhi International Airport Ltd (DIAL), as confirmed by photos shared by the minister.
Officials close to the development said that Naidu asked all airlines to resume full operations by May 15. This comes as airlines like IndiGo, Air India, Air India Express, and SpiceJet have yet to return to their routine schedules.
To be sure, flight restrictions that were imposed due to unrest between India and Pakistan last week, were lifted on Monday, effectively cancelling the previous directive that was to remain in place until 5.29 am on May 15.
He further wrote, 'We, the Ministry of Civil Aviation, are proud to witness the aviation sector rising to the occasion with a unified commitment to 'Nation First.' With the continued support of airlines, airport operators, and other partners, the Ministry will stand firmly with the armed forces.'
Officials also said that Naidu mentioned the success of Operation Sindoor.
'They (airline representatives) also mentioned that booking cancellations are already being observed, indicating weak travel sentiment just as the summer rush begins, 'he said.
'During the meeting, officials said, airlines also raised operational concerns. Some of them flagged the potential loss of Viability Gap Funding (VGF) during the period of airport closures,' a second official aware of the developments said.
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