Coronavirus: Around 100 flights cancelled in 40 days from Chennai airport

Similarly, 62 flights have been cancelled in March.

Published: 15th March 2020 05:42 AM 

Information on flights being displayed at the Chennai airport on Saturday | Martin Louis

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: There are very few takers for the freebies airlines are offering these days. Given the current situation, nearly 100 flights have been cancelled at Chennai over the last 40 days. According to information obtained by Express, 37 flights were cancelled in February alone, which included 9 from Indigo, 6 from Malaysian Airlines, 2 from Batik Air, 2 from Singapore Airlines, 4 from Lufthansa and 14 from Cathay Pacific.

Similarly, 62 flights have been cancelled in March. These include 6 from Kuwait Airlines, 4 from Sri Lankan Airlines, 6 from Thai Airways, 29 from Indigo and 17 from Air India. After the travel ban advisory, a total of 21 services, 10 arrivals and 11 departures, have been cancelled and sources predict more cancellations. According to Chennai airport, 10 flights, including two to domestic destinations have been cancelled. Eleven departures stood cancelled. However, details pertaining to how many foreigners flew out of Chennai following deadline on visa clamp could not be gathered. 

On March 5, IATA estimated that the crisis could wipe out $113 billion of revenue. Airlines will need emergency measures to get through the crisis. “Air transport is vital, but without a lifeline from governments, we will have a sectoral financial crisis piled on top of the public health emergency,” said Alexandre de Juniac, IATA’s Director General and CEO.