Flights between India and UK to resume from 8 Jan 2021

New Delhi, Jan 01: India on Friday said that it has decided to lift ban on flights from the UK and will resume operations from 8 January in a limited manner amid concerns of the new and highly infectious covid-19 strain spread, which was first identified in Britain.

Union Minister of Civil Aviation Hardeep Singh Puri said that "It has been decided that flights between India & UK will resume from 8th January, 2021. Operations till 23 Jan will be restricted to 15 flights per week each for carriers of two countries to & from Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru & Hyderabad only."

India on 21 December ordered to impose a temporary suspension on flights coming from UK after the emergence of a new and highly infectious strain of the coronavirus in Britain. The suspension of flights came into effect from 22 December midnight and will continue till 31 December, the government added.

The mutant virus was first detected in southeast England in September. It is quickly becoming the dominant strain in London and other parts of the UK, and has led to surging infection numbers and the toughest levels of restrictions