Air India flight brings 34 Andhra Pradesh citizens home

VIJAYAWADA: As many as 34 people from Andhra Pradesh were flown back to the country from Chicago in an Air India flight on Sunday. After landing at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Hyderabad, 31 of the 34 passengers were brought to Vijayawada in buses; while two were allowed to leave for Tirupati to attend the last rites of a family member, one passenger opted to stay in Hyderabad.

The flight, carrying 350-odd passengers from Chicago, first landed in New Delhi and reached Hyderabad airport around 5 am. The two buses arranged by the Andhra Pradesh government halted at Berm Park, where the district administration had arranged food for the returnees. The passengers were examined before boarding the flight and also in New Delhi and Hyderabad. “After they reached here (Vijayawada), we collected and sent their swab samples for testing through RTPCR method,” said Krishna joint collector Dr. K Madhavi Latha.