100-plus flights cancelled, airfares for April nosedive amid coronavirus scare in Chennai

TNN | Mar 17, 2020, 04.15 AM IST

CHENNAI: The number of flights cancelled due to Covid-19 in the past 15 days crossed 100. They include flights to Jaffna and Doha from yesterday. Flights to Singapore, London and some destinations in the Middle East continue to operate at reduced frequency and with 50% patronage. Batik Air cancelled its flights to Kuala Lumpur on Monday.

A senior official of Airports Authority of India (AAI) said there was a drop of around 30% on footfalls at the international terminals. However, the terminal may be in for a complete shutdown in the next few days as India has issued an advisory that no airlines should pick passengers from Europe.

On Monday, the international terminal looked deserted with the flight information display board showing most of the flights as cancelled. The food and beverages shops outside the building that cater to the people who come to receive passengers looked empty and dusty. As India has suspended visas, travellers who land the airport are Indians who are returning. “This will also go down because many, including students in the US and Canada, have decided to stay back,” said an official.

Airlines are also canceling international flights at other airports. The Kuala Lumpur-bound Air Asia and Malindo Air and Colombo-bound Sri Lankan Airlines have suspended their services for a brief period from Trichy international airport.

Most of the retail and food and beverages shops at the international terminal have shut down because of poor footfalls. Owners of retailers and food and beverage shops have asked AAI to waive licence fee for a month or till the flight schedules turn normal. Every unit pays a fixed amount of Rs 5 lakh to Rs 10 lakh a month to the airport.

However, AAI is yet to take a decision either to shut the terminal or offer a waiver. “AAI headquarters have to take a decision on the waiver. We have been sending reports about footfall and flight cancellations to Delhi,” said an official.

Though most of the domestic flights are being operated, many see fewer passengers per day. “The check-ins are going down by the day and there are not much crowd at the domestic terminal on morning peak hours,” an airline staff said. Chennai-Port Blair flights will be hit as Port Blair administration has issued an order banning tourists into the island for a week.

Domestic arrivals too have dipped. A staff at the prepaid taxi counter said there was a drop in demand for taxi by around 50%.

The uncertainty in travelling due to spread of Covid-19 across many countries has led to airfares dipping for flights from Chennai to UK and the US for travel in April. Return tickets from the US are selling at Rs 50,000 to Rs 80,000 and fares to London via Abu Dhabi and Dubai are at Rs 40,000. While most flights have been cancelled now, airlines have scheduled flights in April and May. However, not many are booking.