UAE airports’ passenger numbers will see 30% drop after India flight ban

UAE airports’ passenger numbers will see 30% drop after India flight ban

Dubai: Airports in the UAE would have lost around 30 per cent of their passenger traffic after the suspension of flights from India over mounting COVID-19 infection rates. “Under the current circumstances, it is difficult to envisage when these [restrictions] will stop,” said Stefano Baronci, Director-General of Airports Council International (ACI) for the Asia-Pacific territory. Meanwhile, repatriation flights continue to bring stranded Indian nationals and essential goods to the country. “Domestically, traffic is still going on [in India] - for such a big country, there is no substitution to air travel,” said Baronci. The UAE had initially imposed a 10-day entry ban on commercial flights from India, but that’s been extended indefinitely. India is facing a ‘second wave’ crisis, with COVID-19 daily numbers hitting the 400,000 a day mark. There is also the UK’s ban on all non-essential international travel – a resolution on that score will also be needed for UAE airports to get some needed bounce. (In the first three months, saw a near 70 per cent drop in overall passenger movements compared to a year ago, which was before global air travel was curtailed.) As for airlines, more work will be needed to reclaim lost ground from