Dubai: India’s repatriation of its citizens from the UAE has entered the second phase, with three new flights set to take off from Dubai and Abu Dhabi today.
Reconfirming the schedule from Dubai, the Consulate General of India on Friday tweeted, “We are happy that 11 Air India Express flights are planned to India from Dubai in the second phase of Vande Bharat Mission, starting tomorrow, May 16 and ending May 23.”
According to the Air India Express schedule, the three flights that will leave on Saturday (May 16) include one from Dubai to Kochi and two from Abu Dhabi to Thiruvananthapuram and Khozikode.
The May 17 flights include two to Kochi – one each from Dubai and Abu Dhabi – besides one to Kannur from Dubai.
As of May 18, there is one flight each from Dubai to Mangalore and Abu Dhabi to Kochi.
The full schedule with details of the flights can be obtained from: http://www.airindia.in/evacuation-flight.htm or https://mea.gov.in/vande-bharat-mission-list-of-flights.htm
Ever since the Indian Government started the repatriation process on May 7, there has been a steady stream of Indians flying back to their home country on the special flights being arranged under the Vande Bharath Mission.
On Thursday, the Indian Consulate tweeted ahead of the last flight of the initial phase in Dubai: “First phase of repatriation flights to India about to finish with AI 996 to Delhi soon, covering more than 2,000 passengers from UAE and with belief that similar number of families saw their loved ones again.”
During the first phase, the Indian Government repatriated over 12,000 people from 12 countries on 61 flights. The number is expected to be far higher during the second phase as Air India and Air India Express plan to operate 149 flights globally.
