As many as 334 Indians, who were stranded in the United States, took off from Chicago and will touch down in Mumbai in the early hours of May 13 and will then head to Chennai.
Late on Monday evening (local time), through the Vande Bharat Mission, a special flight AI 126 took back Indians from the South-East Jurisdiction of the Indian Mission in the United States.
"We have tried to reach out to people in distress like people who are on short term visas and their visas are expiring, people who have been laid off from work, cases of a medical emergency, pregnant women, elderly and students whose universities have closed down," Amit Kumar, Consul General of India in Chicago told .
"All in all, it has been a smooth operation with complete cooperation with Air India, We have received help from the local authorities, several ministries back in India and the State Governments. The consulate in Chicago and indeed the embassy and multiple consulates in the United States are working 24 by seven with all the stakeholders to ensure that all these special flights are conducted smoothly,' The consul general added.
Several hours before take off, passengers gathered at the O'Hare International Airport in Chicago to undergo a mandatory health protocol. After undergoing the screening process at the airport, all the passengers who will arrive in Mumbai will be shifted to hotels for a 14-day quarantine.
A Pune resident, Sandeep Pradhan, who has been stranded in Atlanta for more than two months was relieved that he could return home in the first phase of the repatriation process. "I was lucky to be listed on the first flight out of Chicago," said Pradhan.
Nagesh Sane, another Indian citizen, who was visiting the US with his wife shared a similar sentiment. "There Was no Future visibility as to when we could get back to India, but with Government of India's evacuation effort and the coordination between the consulate and Air India we were confident of returning home," added Sane.
AI 126 is the third flight from the United States that is a part of India's mega repatriation plan to bring back stranded Indian citizens from abroad that began from May 7. The next flight from Chicago will be on May 15, heading to Delhi and onwards to Hyderabad.
Yesterday, Air India's first Mumbai-bound repatriation flight with Indians departed from Newark Liberty International Airport.
( With inputs from ANI )