UK reopening August 8: Flight caps & pent-up demand send fares more than double in student season

NEW DELHI: Airfares on India-UK sector have increased by upto more than two times starting August 8, when India stops being on UK’s red list and visitors from here will again be allowed with no need for a mandatory 10-day hotel quarantine.

The reason is a combination of three factors — a cap of 30 weekly scheduled flights between the two countries; pent up demand for travel for almost 3.5 months since April 23 when restrictions were imposed on visitors from here during the second wave and the ongoing peak student travel season.

According to travel portal ixigo, average one-way economy fares from Mumbai and Delhi to London between March 8 and 22, 2021, were Rs 35,871 and Rs 40,273, respectively.