Meal Service To Resume On Short-Duration Flights In India

Picture courtesy Air India

New Delhi: Meal service on domestic flights of less than two hours’ duration is set to resume in India.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA), which had sought directions on amending existing regulations, has given the green signal to the Union Health and Family Welfare ministry in this regard, PTI reported.

The Health ministry has also said that crew members on duty in flights no longer need to wear coveralls, but should continue wearing gloves, masks and face shields.

The government banned serving food on short-duration flights from April 15 because of the devastating second wave of COVID-19 pandemic.

Following a two-month ban after a nationwide lockdown was announced in end-March last year, domestic flight services resumed on May 25, 2020 with several restrictions. In-flight meals were initially allowed under certain conditions.

But after the second wave hit India, food was allowed to be served only in flights of over two hours’ duration, provided the airlines used disposable cutlery and served pre-packed food.