New Delhi: The private airline companies have once again started taking bookings for both domestic and international travel, violating aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) order which warned airlines not to take bookings until they receive orders from the government.
The airlines that have restarted booking include Spicejet, GoAir, Vistara and IndiGo, even after no clear indication from the Centre that nationwide lockdown will not be extended after May 3.
SpiceJet and GoAir have started bookings starting May 16, while Indigo and Vistara are taking bookings from June 1, according to their websites.
"All airlines are hereby directed to refrain from booking tickets,” the Directorate General of Civil Aviation had said on April 19.
“Further, the airlines may note that they shall be given sufficient notice and time for restarting operations," the circular had stated.
On a query by ETV Bharat, Vistara spokesperson said: "We are taking booking from June 1. We cannot make any further comment on the issue."
Ministry of Civil Aviation and IndiGo spokespersons response was awaited till the time of publication.
However, an airline executive had said on the condition of anonymity that typically, all airlines open bookings 330 days in advance.
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“So, suppose if DGCA asks the airlines to cancel bookings till 15 June, we can do that for specific period of time, but indefinite cancellation is difficult to do,” he said.
"Looking at the present conditions, if we don't take any bookings, then we cannot take any forward bookings for months like December and afterwards. Seeing, all this, it will be a huge loss for a company and one cannot lock bookings indefinitely,” according to the airline official.
Meanwhile, airports are all set to welcome the passengers with new rules to avoid crowding and restrict the spread of Covid-19.
Delhi airport said it would deploy a team of 500 professionals to carry out frequent disinfection every hour.
Similarly, Mumbai airport has also formulated set of standard operating procedures, which include social distancing, thermal screening, setting up temporary quarantine centres.
Talking to ETV Bharat, GMR corporate communications head Tushar Makkar said it is the decision of the airlines to start bookings.
“But, as far as airports are concerned, basically airports are in a state of readiness. Final DGCA norms are still awaited,” Makkar said. “So, as and when the final DGCA norms come into force, we will start operations… Everything depends on when the lockdown opens.”
International Aviation, Aerospace and Drone Foundation president Sanat Kaul said the airlines are taking a calculated risk.
“If the lockdown gets further extended, they will have to refund passengers money as per the DGCA order. We cannot allow the economy to collapse, airlines should be given clarification on this,” Kaul said.
The aviation industry is facing its most uncertain phase due to the lockdown over the novel coronavirus pandemic.
According to a report by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the Indian aviation sector would be the worst hit in terms of jobs, with a likely impact on over 29 lakh jobs and revenue of the sector in the country may fall by USD 11,221 million.
