The flight, KLM 871, according to reports, was due to land in Delhi around one in the morning on Saturday, but was ‘redirected’ back to Amsterdam by civil aviation authorities when it was flying over Russia.
Representational image (Photo: Getty Images)
A Delhi-bound flight from Amsterdam which took off on March 20 without an approved flight plan was forced to return to Amsterdam after civilian aviation authorities in India made it clear that it would not be permitted to land amid the Coronavirus scare.
The flight, KLM 871, according to reports, was due to land in Delhi around one in the morning on Saturday, but was “redirected” back to Amsterdam by civil aviation authorities when it was flying over Russia.
The aircraft, with nearly 100 Indians on board, was carrying passengers in transit at Schipol Airport who had flown in from US and Canada to catch a connecting flight.
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It is reported that the flight was forced to return due to “confusion” by airport authorities.
On March 18, India had banned flights from the EU and instructed all airlines not to board passengers. This airline operated this flight in breach of these guidelines.
“Travel of passengers from member countries of the European Union, the European free trade association, Turkey and the United Kingdom to India is prohibited with effect from March 18, 2020. No airline shall board passengers from these nations to India with effect from 1200 GMT on March 18, 2020. The airline shall enforce this at the port of initial departure. Both these instructions are temporary measures and shall be in force till March 31, 2020, and will be reviewed subsequently,” said the aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
While the Ministry of Civil Aviation maintains that the advisory applies to all travelling from or via Europe, the Ministry of External Affairs has maintained that it doesn’t affect transit passengers.
The ban on the European countries and the UK follows Europe being declared the new epicentre of Coronavirus, which had originated in Wuhan province of China.
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