Air India To Operate Direct Flights Between Kochi And London From August 18

Air India has decided to operate direct flight between Kochi and London. The service will commence from August 18. The Heathrow – Kochi – Heathrow flight will arrive at Kochi airport at 03:45 am and depart at 05:50 am every Wednesday.

The airline will operate AI 150/149 Dreamliner between Nedumbassery Air port and Heathrow every Wednesday. It will take 10 hours to complete the journey.

It is in the wake of the new decision by the U.K easing the travel restrictions on India that Air India decided to operate flight between Kochi and London.

The United Kingdom has changed the travel restriction status imposed on India from ‘Red’ to ‘Amber’. It is due to the decreasing number of Covid-19 cases in India.

The U.K government had earlier categorized destinations–green,amber,or red– after analyzing vaccination rates, coronavirus cases and the prevalence of variants of concern.

As India has been moved from the UK’s red to amber list, fully vaccinated travellers are no longer required to undergo hotel quarantine for 10 days, and can remain in home isolation. However, entering the UK from India requires three Covid-19 tests — the first, at least three days prior to departure; the second, on the day of arrival or before Day 2; and the third, on or after Day 8. Home quarantine for 10 days is also mandatory.

India was previously on the red list due to the second wave of Covid-19 in the country. This meant British nationals or residents in India can only be traveled to the U.K.

For UK nationals who are fully vaccinated, neither quarantine nor the Day 8 test are required according to amber list restrictions.