UK Government Organises Repatriation Flight From Israel to Cyprus via Royal Air Force A400M
Key Highlights :
The UK Government has organised a repatriation flight from Israel to Cyprus via Royal Air Force A400M, following difficulties obtaining insurance for a flight to the UK. According to FlightRadar24, the A400M left Tel Aviv on Friday night, just after 10pm.
The Ministry of Defence and The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) did not confirm that the A400M flight was the charter flight. However, a Foreign Office statement said: “A charter flight has now left Israel (October 13), with further flights expected to leave in the coming days while commercial options are limited.”
It appears that the UK Government had been having difficulty organising repatriation flights from Israel due to problems obtaining insurance. A UK-organised flight was initially planned to arrive at Gatwick Airport on Friday, but that was cancelled amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict. An attempt to arrange a flight landing at the West Sussex airport at 5.40pm on Friday also failed.
It is understood that one of the reasons for the lack of flights is that Titan Airways, the contracted airline, was having difficulties arranging insurance. The airline was approached for comment.
In the absence of commercial options, the FCDO has said that it will organise flights for British nationals, including dual nationals, and their dependants if travelling with a British national normally resident in the UK. Each ticket will cost £300, which “reflects the costs of operating the flight”, according to the FCDO. The children and other dependants of British diplomats will be given seats as “we have a duty of care to our staff”.
Meanwhile, other options include scheduled services to Heathrow and Luton airports by Israeli airline El Al and a repatriation flight to Heathrow for Australian nationals organised by the country’s government and operated by Qantas. Several airlines have suspended their flights between Israel and the UK, including British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, easyJet and Wizz Air.
The UK Government's decision to organise a repatriation flight from Israel to Cyprus via Royal Air Force A400M is a welcome move for British nationals who have been stranded in Israel due to the ongoing conflict. The flight will provide much needed relief to those who have been unable to secure commercial flights, and it will also ensure that British diplomats and their dependants are able to return home safely.
