174 Egyptians stranded in Qatar brought back home

CAIRO – 18 June 2020: The Cairo International Airport has received an exceptional flight from Muscat, Oman, carrying 174 Egyptians who had been stranded in Qatar since international flights were suspended due to the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

The flight is within an air bridge operated by Egypt to bring home 3,000 citizens stuck in Qatar through Oman, where they arrive on an Omani airline. Those are carried daily to the Egyptian capital on 2 two flights operated by EgyptAir and Air Cairo.

Since international aviation has been suspended on March 19, more than 30,000 Egyptians have been brought home on exceptional flights. The beginning was with stranded citizens who were in visits or temporary stays in foreign countries. Currently, the repatriation of expats who have been terminated, particularly in Gulf countries, is underway.

Repatriated citizens used to be quarantined in Marsa Alam hotels at their own expense or university dorms at the state's expense for 14 days but now they have to self-isolate at home for the same duration.

This comes while Egypt plans to resume international flights starting July 1 amid strict preventive measures, including inspecting Egyptian airports continuously and providing them with a system of thermal cameras to detect the temperature of passengers and continuing comprehensive sterilization and disinfection work, as well as applying social distancing among travelers and obliging everyone to wear masks.

Procedures shall also include sterilizing all planes before and after each flight and making sure all passengers wear facemasks inside the plane. Also, places in the plane were allocated for people with chronic diseases who cannot put on masks for long time, while the last two rows in each plane will be allocated to isolate passengers who may show some symptoms of infectious diseases.

Know about the rules set by the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities for the re-opening of touristic establishments: