India

India Introduces New Boarding‑Pass Rules for Interline Flights After Delhi Immigration Incident

By Neha LM Tripathi

The Indian government has revised procedures for boarding‑pass issuance and passenger verification to distinguish interline and codeshare flights from those operating under the hub‑and‑spoke model. Under the new rules, passengers on interline and codeshare itineraries will receive their second boarding pass at the connecting airport after immigration, rather than at the originating airport. Their baggage will still be checked in and tagged at the origin for the entire journey. For Air India’s hub‑and‑spoke connections, both boarding passes will continue to be issued at the point of origin, and will be marked with an ‘I’ for domestic flights and ‘I’ for international flights. Delhi airport has added counters to support the changes, and airlines have deployed extra staff to reinforce checks at boarding points and transfer areas. The adjustments were made following consultations between the government and airlines. The changes were prompted by an immigration lapse on September 4, when three Italian passengers traveling from Amritsar to Delhi boarded a connecting Lufthansa flight to Munich without completing mandatory immigration formalities. The passengers had been issued boarding passes at Amritsar for both legs, but the flights were not part of Air India’s hub‑and‑spoke model, which allows passengers to clear immigration at the origin before connecting to an international flight. The passengers were taken to the transfer area after landing in Delhi instead of to immigration counters, and boarded the Lufthansa flight without completing the required formalities. Air India and Lufthansa operate an interline partnership that permits passengers to book connecting flights on different airlines under a single itinerary. The revised procedure aims to separate such connections from those covered by the hub‑and‑spoke arrangement. The civil aviation ministry issued a show‑cause notice to former Air India chief executive Campbell Wilson over alleged procedural lapses, and the home ministry convened a stakeholder meeting chaired by Home Secretary Govind Mohan to discuss the incident and steps to strengthen checks, although the meeting could not be held.