270 stranded Egyptians arrive in Marsa Alam Airport from Dubai

CAIRO - 17 May 2020: Marsa Alam airport received on Saturday a flight coming from Dubai with 270 stranded Egyptians on board, a source at the airport said in press statements.

A quarantine team has carried out medical checkups on the passengers and disinfected their luggage, he added.

The passengers were then moved to a hotel in the Red Sea resort city to spend a 14-day quarantine in line with the preventive measures taken to stem the spread of coronavirus.

On May 16, sources at Marsa Alam International Airport told Al watan newspaper that the airport has received over the past 60 days around 7,000 passengers who are citizens who were stuck abroad and returned on exceptional flights.

It's noted that stranded Egyptians are brought to Marsa Alam, which is a resort town lying on the Red Sea coast, where they are tested for COVID-19 at the airport and quarantined at hotels for 14 days at their expense.

Aviation suspension in Egypt began on March 19, except for domestic and cargo flights. Also, tourists who had arrived before the date were allowed to complete their program, and leave on dates scheduled beforehand.

A number of tourists requested to remain in Egypt as COVID-19 outbreak took its toll on their countries. Hence, Egyptian authorities approved as long as they go through coronavirus tests instructing the travel agencies to ensure the visitors' visas duration is extended by the Ministry of Interior, and informing their respective countries of their desire.