Maldives Airports Company Limited (MACL) has revealed that 10 international passenger flights have already confirmed slots to land in the Maldives at Velana International Airport upon reopening.
Speaking at a meeting with the Parliament’s State-owned Enterprises Committee, MACL officials revealed that this includes flights from Sri Lankan Airlines, Qatar Airways, Etihad Airways, Emirates Airlines, Hong Kong, IndiGo, Singapore Airlines, Silk Air and Turkish Airlines.
The requests from the carriers are as follows:
From July 1:
SriLankan Airlines – 3 daily flights
Qatar Airways – 1 daily flight starting
From July 15:
Emirates Airlines – 1 daily flight
Etihad Airways – 2 weekly flights
Hong Kong Airlines – 2 weekly flights
IndiGo – 2 daily flights
Singapore Airlines – 1 daily flight
Silk Air – 2 daily flights
Turkish Airlines – 2 daily flights, 5 days a week
MACL’s Acting Managing Director Moosa Solih further highlighted that the airlines are waiting for the announcement of an exact date and this decision is undertaken at the national level.
Passengers requested to be at the airport four hours before the flight
Passengers are required to attend the airport around four hours before their flight, MACL announced.
With the “new normal” measures in place, procedures at the airport will be prolonged and passengers will only be allowed to enter the airport after thermal scans.
“HPA guideline says to fill out an online form and to obtain an IR code before moving on to arrival and departure,” an official of MACL said. “Due to such additional measures, we request passengers to arrive at the airport four hours before their flight.”
Number Of Flights Maybe Fewer Than Anticipated
While Velana International Airport is all geared up for the “new normal,” the officials revealed that the Maldives may welcome fewer than the anticipated number of flights when the country reopens the borders in July. “We expect flight movements to be three times lower than during peak season,” they added.
Moosa Solih said that VIA’s international arrivals terminal previously catered to 1,000 passengers at any given time. However, with the safety measures in place, this will be cut down to 570. Moreover, the capacity of the international departures terminal will also be reduced from 1,200 to 750 passengers.
