Ukraine: AI flight carrying Indian evacuees to arrive in Mumbai in evening

The campaign to repatriate Indian nationals from Ukraine has commenced as the first Air India flight, AIC-1944, from Bucharest in Romania carrying 219 Indian evacuees from Ukraine, is expected to arrive in the city late evening, an official statement said on Saturday.

The Air India flight had departed from Mumbai at 3.38 am on Saturday and landed in Bucharest at around 10.45 am (Indian standard time). From Bucharest it departed for the city's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport at around 1.55 pm (IST).

According to a statement from CSMIA earlier in the day, the first flight with Indian evacuees from Ukraine is expected to arrive from Bucharest at 8 pm.

"Campaign to repatriate Indian nationals begins. The first AIC-1944 carrying 219 Indian departed from Henri Coanda International Airport in Bucharest. The plane is expected to arrive in Mumbai late evening, PIBMumbai said in a tweet on Saturday.

"In the light of the current crisis in Ukraine, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) is extending full support to the evacuation of the stranded Indian students, who are arriving in Mumbai today (Saturday) by AI-1944 at 8 pm (expected time of arrival)," CSMIA said in the statement earlier in the day.

The private airport operator also said it has blocked a special corridor for the arriving passengers.

The Ukrainian airspace has been closed for civil aircraft operations since the morning of February 24 and therefore, the evacuation flights are operating out of Bucharest and Budapest.

Around 20,000 Indians, mainly students, are currently stranded in Ukraine, according to officials.

The private airport operator said it has fenced in a special area at the facility for the arriving passengers to sit and will also provide them with free Wi-Fi codes, distribute food and water bottles.

They will also be provided with any guidance or medical assistance if required at the time of arrival, it said.

The airport has blocked a special corridor for the arriving passengers, CSMIA said, adding as per the guidelines laid down by the government, the Airport Health Organization (APHO) team at the facility will be conducting mandatory temperature checks.

Passengers would be required to produce either a COVID-19 vaccination certificate or a negative RT-PCR test report at the time of arrival. In case any passenger is not able to show any of the documents at the time of arrival, they will have to undergo RT-PCR testing at the airport, where the cost would be borne by the airport, it said.

These passengers would be able to leave the airport post-testing negative.

Before the closure of the Ukrainian airspace, Air India had operated one flight to Ukrainian capital Kyiv on February 22 that brought 240 people back to India.

It had planned to operate two more flights on February 24 and February 26 but it could not do so as the Russian offensive began on February 24 and the Ukrainian airspace was consequently shut down.