Team Blitz India
VISITING visa holders who are flying from India to the UAE are being urged to book their roundtrip tickets on the same airline, travel agents said, according to a report in Khaleej Times.
Some travellers were reportedly unable to fly to the UAE because their return flights to India were booked on a different airline.
“Advisories from some airlines state that if the journey to the UAE is booked with them, the journey to India must also be booked with the same airline. Failure to comply with this new requirement may result in passengers being denied boarding,” Taha Siddique, director of Siddique Travels, told Khaleej Times.
“Some of my clients faced this issue as their ticket to Dubai was booked on one airline and the return was booked on another. I am now advising my clients that it would be better to book both legs of the journey on the same carrier,” said Siddique.
This was supported by other travel agents. “I have also seen advisories from certain carriers that they will not be accepting travellers with tickets from different airlines,” said Noushad Hassan, managing director of Alhind Business Centre. “However, these advisories were mostly received by our office in India and not the UAE. In any case, it is advisable to book on the same carrier to avoid unnecessary complications.”
With more people being stopped from boarding their flights from India, agents are advising caution. “I believe it is better to book onward and return journey tickets on the same airline for hassle-free travel,” added Libin Varghese from Rooh Tourism. The advisory on tickets comes after stricter checks were reportedly introduced at airports in Dubai. Travel agents said some passengers had to fly back home for not meeting certain requirements.
“We have seen cases of up to 40 passengers being returned on the same flight,” said Noushad.
