Work initiated for Oman-India air bubble extension beyond December 27

Muscat: The air bubble agreement between Oman and India that started from October 1 and valid till December 27 will be extended. The necessary processes have already been initiated in that direction, Anuj Swarup, Second Secretary at the Indian Embassy in Oman, told Gulf News.

The initial agreement that was effective till November 30 was revised to the current date of December 27. Right now, only the national airlines of both countries, Oman Air and Salam Air from Oman and Air India Express and Air India from India, can operate commercial flights.

With the air bubble agreement in place, the normal commercial flights and not Vande Bharat Mission flights are in operation. VBM flights are operational currently only to those countries with whom an air bubble agreement is not in place. The number of passengers allowed as weekly quota between Oman and India was also reduced from the initially agreed 10,000 to 5,000 each way between the operators.

As per schedule, Air India will operate flights from Ahmedabad to Muscat and from Muscat to Mumbai on Wednesdays and Fridays, between Muscat and Chennai on Tuesday and Saturday and to Delhi on Thursday and Sunday.

Air India Express will operate flights under the agreement to various Indian cities such as Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Lucknow, Bengaluru, Mangalore, Vijayawada, Hyderabad, Kochi, Trivandrum, Kannur, Tiruchirapalli and Calicut on different designated days. Oman Air flights as per the air bubble agreement will be to the three metros of India, namely, Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai apart from Kochi and Hyderabad, operated twice weekly. Salam Air flights to India, as shown in their booking site, are to Bangalore, Calicut, Jaipur, Hyderabad, Lucknow, Chennai, and Trivandrum.