One-way air fares from Delhi to UAE hit Rs 70,000 after India-Pakistan ceasefire; massive backlog for airlines

The India-Pakistan ceasefire has come as a relief to both countries, but this has contributed to the skyrocketing of air fares to the UAE. While flights from some Indian cities see a massive increase in passengers, most flights from Pakistan are booked out after airports finally reopened, according to reports. 

 

The situation is such that the one-way airfare from Delhi to Dubai for Monday on a full-fledged carrier touched Rs 44,670 due to the closure of airports in Punjab, reported Khaleej Times. The regular daily flights from Chandigarh and Amritsar airports have to be diverted to Delhi, causing airfares to skyrocket. Now that the Punjab airports have been reopened, it is expected that the fares will stabilise around Rs 21,050.  

 

The Delhi-Abu Dhabi airfares stood at Rs 51,600 for Monday and Rs 90,300 for Tuesday, the report added. The fares on budget carriers on the Delhi-Sharjah route ranged between Rs 31,439 and Rs 27,278 over the next few days due to high demand.

 

Many passengers fear the situation could worsen again, forcing another airport shutdown. "There is a strong demand from people stuck in India and Pakistan because they want to return to the UAE as soon as possible," said Mir Wasim Raja, manager of International Travel Services, told Khaleej Times. "Because of strong demand, airfares have gone up by 20 per cent as flights are operating at full capacity," Raja added. 

 

Things are the same in Pakistan. As per the report, the flight charge from Lahore to Dubai, which was booked out, touched Pakistani rupee 7,00,000 (Dh 9,100) over the last week. The seats on Lahore-Abu Dhabi were almost sold out till Wednesday due to heavy passenger traffic, with airfares reaching Pakistani rupee 5,40,000 (Dh 7,050).

 

Hundreds of flights from Pakistan were cancelled over the past few days due to the closure of airspace, resulting in a massive backlog.

Middle East