5 more flights for Britons stranded in Amritsar, Ahmedabad

The UK government on Thursday announced five further flights to bring home British travellers stranded in India due to the coronavirus lockdown, with four flights scheduled between Amritsar and London and one from Ahmedabad to London next week.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) said that once these flights are completed, over 16,500 travellers will have been brought back from India on 64 special flights chartered as part of the government's 75-million pound repatriation programme during the coronavirus pandemic lockdown.

Our special charter flight programme has been a concerted effort, with daily flight departures to the UK from across India since 8 April alongside ongoing support to those who remain, said Lord Tariq Ahmad, Minister of State in the FCO for South Asia and the Commonwealth.

These further flights bring the number of planes chartered by the government to bring British travellers home from India to 64, he said.

As with the last round of flights, seats on the planes will be allocated to those who have already registered on the British government's online booking portal, Corporate Travel Management (CTM). The British High Commission in India said its staff will continue to provide assistance to those waiting to return to the UK.

Jan Thompson, Acting High Commissioner to India, said: We have helped over 14,000 travellers return to the UK so far on charter flights, and I am pleased to announce a further round to bring back those still waiting to get home. I strongly encourage anyone who wants to leave to accept seats offered to them. We continue to support all British nationals who require assistance.

The FCO said its flights are aimed at British nationals and depart from regions of India with the highest demand. The focus is also on helping vulnerable non-British UK residents with Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) or permanent residency where possible. Other visa categories may also be accommodated where possible, the FCO said.

Seats on the charter flights are allocated to those already registered, with confirmations of the flight sent directly alongside information on how to get to airports once the seat is confirmed.

The latest tranche of UK flights comes as the Indian government also began the repatriation process for its nationals stranded abroad, with specially commissioned Air India flights set to fly between London Heathrow Airport and Mumbai, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Chennai and Bengaluru from this weekend.