Dabolim airport ready for take-off, offers 30 landing slots to airlines

PANAJI: With domestic aircraft set to take to the skies from Monday, Goa International Airport has informed airlines and the director general of civil aviation that only 30 domestic passenger flights can land on a daily basis.
Sources told TOI that the process of allocating landing slots for different airlines is being finalised at the Centre and tickets could be available for booking in a day or two.
The Airports Authority of India (AAI) has decided to offer 30 landing slots for airlines since the Union ministry of civil aviation, in its guidelines, has permitted only one-third of pre-lockdown operations to start in the first phase.
Goa used to handle around 90 international and domestic arrivals per day.
The ministry of civil aviation has issued a set of standard operating procedures for passengers, airlines and airports that need to be adhered to prior to being able to fly. Passengers will need to follow health protocols as decided by different states. Passengers arriving at Dabolim will be tested using rapid TrueNat test kits and may also be asked to quarantine themselves.
“It is now for the airlines to decide whether they would like to operate and what places they want to connect. It is projected that passengers in metro stations will be more inclined to fly and then it is in the interest of airlines to see if they want to connect to other stations,” an official said.
Domestic and international flights were suspended in March after a nationwide lockdown was ordered to check the spread of Covid-19. Resumption of flights comes after the Indian Railways’ move to gradually resume its services.