The US government on Monday accused charter flights from India of “unfair and discriminatory practices” and has restricted Air India repatriation flights.
The US government said that the flights have been violating a treaty governing aviation between the two countries.
Just before this, the US Department of Transport had issued an order which will require Air India to obtain prior approval before operating any third/fourth-freedom charter flights known as ‘Vande Bharat’ to or from the country.
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Air India Ltd, that has been making flights to repatriate its citizens during the travel disruptions caused by the COVID-19 outbreak, has also been selling tickets to the public, the Transportation Department alleged.
The Department of Transportation says that US airlines have been prohibited from flying to India by aviation regulators there.
It further said that the charters go beyond true repatriations, and it appears that Air India may be using repatriation charters as a way of circumventing that nation’s flight restrictions.
According to the department, Air India is advertising a schedule that is more than half of pre-virus operations; the department also said that they will reconsider the restrictions once India lifts restrictions on US carriers.
The US Department of Transportation had earlier placed similar restrictions on Chinese airlines after the US agency accused that nation of unfairly banning American carriers in the wake of the virus.
