Naidu: Discussed early resumption of direct flights with the Chinese | Business News
Resumption of direct passenger flights between India and China was discussed in a meeting between Civil Aviation Minister
K Rammohan Naidu and Song Zhiyong, Administrator of the Civil Aviation Administration of China.
This was disclosed by Naidu Thursday morning in a post on X which was deleted later.
“As the Chairman for the 2nd Asia Pacific Ministerial Conference on Civil Aviation, I have been utilising the platform to engage in sideline meetings with foreign delegations. This morning, alongside Secretary Shri Vumlunmang Vualnam and other senior officials from my ministry, I had courtesy meeting with Chinese delegation led by Mr Song Zhiyong to exchange views regarding further strengthening civil aviation cooperation between the two countries, especially promoting early resumption of scheduled passenger flights between us,” Naidu said in the post.
A query emailed to the spokesperson of the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) on why the social media post was deleted did not elicit a response.
The meeting was held on the sidelines of the second Asia Pacific Ministerial Conference on Civil Aviation of the International Civil Aviation Organization Agency (ICAO) being held in New Delhi.
In the post deleted later, Naidu had not elaborated on the discussions with the Chinese delegation.
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Speaking with reporters shortly after the meeting with the Chinese team, Naidu said that while the Chinese delegation did put forth their request of resumption of direct air connectivity, a decision will only be taken after consulting all stakeholders concerned, particularly the Ministry of External Affairs.
Direct passenger flight connectivity between India and China was suspended due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Given that the bilateral relationship soured following the military standoff along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh that began in 2020, direct flights between the two most populous nations have not resumed despite air connectivity returning to pre-pandemic levels globally.
In June, news agency Reuters had reported that China was pressing India to resume direct air connectivity between the two countries, while India was resisting it.
According to a senior official in the MoCA, airlines – Chinese as well as Indian – have been looking to restart direct flights, as there is high demand for travel between the two countries.
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“It is not only our (MoCA’s) call. There are other ministries and departments involved and the government will have to take a decision based on various considerations and inputs,” said the MoCA official who did not wish to be identified.
Prior to the pandemic, there were over 500 direct flights a month between the two countries, majority of which were operated by Chinese airlines Air China, China Eastern, and China Southern. Indian carriers Air India and IndiGo were also operating direct flights between the two countries.
Due to the suspension of direct flights, travel between the two countries is being facilitated by connecting flights from hub airports like Hong Kong, Bangkok and Singapore, increasing duration as well as cost of travel.
