Hyderabad: While the Covid-19 Pandemic continues to grip the world keeping hundreds of countries across the globe including India under lock-down, GMR led Hyderabad International Airport is operating round the clock in service of the nation and on the humanitarian grounds to help stranded foreigners in Telangana State reach their homes through seamless handling of relief and evacuation flights.
Today, the Hyderabad International Airport handled one (01) Special Passenger Relief flight, which operated to repatriate the citizens of Kenya from Hyderabad city in Telangana State.
A special passenger relief flight of Indigo Airlines operated to repatriate a few Kenyan citizens from Hyderabad City. An IndiGo flight, which operated as a purely domestic flight – 6E 9104 – arrived from Chennai via Bangalore landing at Hyderabad International Airport today at 9.20 AM. This aircraft departed to Mumbai at 11.02 AM with 83 Kenyan nationals, out which 32 passengers boarded from Hyderabad, and 51 transit passengers had joined from Chennai and Bangalore.
As per the flight itinerary, the passengers of this flight were to be further airlifted by the Kenyan Airways from Mumbai to their homeland in Kenya.
All these passengers were serviced through a fully-sanitized Domestic Terminal of GMR Hyderabad International Airport, which has been kept ready for evacuation operations. In coordination with the Kenyan consulate, Hyderabad, and the Telangana State government, the Kenyan citizens started to arrive at the airport from 6 AM to 8 AM.
Special screening and safety measures were in place during the flight’s handling as part of COVID-19 precautionary steps that included thermal screening, mandatory social distancing enforced through special queuing arrangements at all passenger processing points.
To meet this emergency requirement, a select group of personnel from GHIAL Terminal Operations, Airside Operations, AOCC (Airport Operations & Control Center), ATC (Air Traffic Control), IT Team, CISF (Central Industrial Security Force), Landside Security, Airline Ground Handlers, ARFF (Airport Rescue and Fire Fighting) services, RAXA security, Trolley Operators, Housekeeping Staff, among others were available to ensure the safe and seamless departure of the passengers.
Till 7th May 2020, GMR Hyderabad International Airport has handled 12 evacuation flights serving over 900 foreign nationals who were repatriated by various special relief flights from Hyderabad city to the countries viz. the UK, the UAE, the US, Kenya, and Germany.
While RGIA is handling the evacuation flights as and when a request comes their way, its cargo terminal is also fully operational to keep the vital link of essential supplies completely alive.
The cargo terminal is working round the clock in close coordination with the Customs, Ground Handlers, Forwarders, CHAs (Customs House Agents), Regulators, State Police, Cargo Trade associations, to keep the critical chain of essential supplies viz. Medicines, Vaccines, Medical equipment, Pharma raw material, Defense Goods, Bank related goods, etc. moving seamlessly.
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