Dubai-India flights not affected as heavy rains lash Kerala, airlines confirm

Image used for illustrative purpose. Photo: File

The UAE and Indian airlines on Thursday said there was no impact on flights operating to the Indian state of Kerala due to heavy rains.

A cyclone hit the Indian state on Wednesday, causing flooding in many areas and prompting the authorities to issue orange alerts for nine districts of the state. The India Meteorological Department warned of more rains in Kerala for the next two days.

Dubai’s flagship carrier Emirates and flydubai said there was no impact due to the rains and flights are operating as per schedule.

Meanwhile, an Air India Express spokesperson also confirmed that there was no impact on UAE-Kerala flights due to heavy rains.

The UAE-India air corridor is one of the busiest as Indians are the largest expat community living and working in the Emirates. Among the 3.7 million Indian diaspora currently living in the UAE, a large number of them are from Kerala.

According to data from Official Airline Guide, the UAE has been the top market for India for the past 10 years, followed by Singapore, Saudi Arabia, Thailand and Qatar. The top three international markets based on capacity in April 2024 are the same as in April 2014. However, Thailand and Qatar are the 4th and 5th largest markets in April 2024, replacing the UK and Malaysia who held those positions 10 years ago.

Looking at the dominant airlines in April 2014, the Indian carriers Air India and Jet Airways ranked first and second, accounting for 16 per cent and 15 per cent of capacity share, respectively, followed by Emirates in third position with 9 per cent capacity share, OAG said.

Fast forward to April 2024, the top two carriers are both still Indian but IndiGo has replaced Jet Airways as the second largest international carrier in terms of capacity.