CIAL operations moving towards pre-pandemic normality

High alert at Kochi airport over new COVID-19 variant

Operations at the Cochin International Airport (CIAL) are back to near normality with the restoration of 185 flights per week to the Gulf destinations besides flights being operated for the U.K. and Sri Lanka sectors. Airport sources said the level of departures was 60 per day in the pre-COVID-19 days and normal operations are expected to be restored by December 15.

However, the alert over the Omicron variant of COVID-19 has cast a shadow over the restoration of full services to the pre-pandemic levels by December 15. There is high alert at the airport over the COVID variant. Passengers from countries such as South Africa, Botswana, Brazil, Hong Kong, Bangladesh, Mauritius, China, New Zealand, Zimbabwe, Singapore and Israel will now have to undergo RT-PCR tests and remain in quarantine for seven days.

CIAL sources said domestic flight operations had touched about 80% of the pre-COVID level. Recent days had seen around 38 departures compared to the 40 to 45 departures during the pre-pandemic days. The airport is now handling around 6,000 passengers per day in departures alone and the total passenger traffic is around 12,000 per day compared to 15,000 passengers per day in the pre-pandemic days.