Mysore/Mysuru: With the enforcement of COVID curfew following the sudden surge in COVID-19 cases, the number of air passengers flying into and out of the city has witnessed a sharp dip over the past few days.

Air Transport operators such as TruJet and Air Alliance used to record a good 70 percent occupancy  regularly in their flights to various destinations such as Bengaluru, Chennai, Belagavi, Hyderabad etc., just two months ago. But the second wave of COVID attack has dealt a big blow to flight operators, who continue to see an occupancy of just about 25 to 30 percent in flights, according to Mysuru Airport Director R. Manjunath.

Pointing out that COVID induced curfew had hit the airline industry hard just as any other industry, Manjunath said that barring Mysuru-Bengaluru-Chennai and Mysuru-Bengaluru-Belagavi flights, all other flights from Mandakalli (Mysuru) Airport were cancelled on Thursday due to poor bookings. 

Noting that with a sharp drop in passengers over the past few days, it has been decided to operate flights only on the number of seat bookings, he said that all airplanes flying into and out of the Airport are being sanitised completely at the airport. Also, the airport has taken measures to ensure that all passengers and staff adhere to appropriate COVID-19 behaviour, he said and added that all staff have been vaccinated and that all precautionary and safety measures in accordance with guidelines have been taken.