Russia will triple the number of regular flights to Egypt on the Moscow-Hurghada and Moscow-Sharm el-Sheikh route to 15 flights starting August 27, the Russian news agency TASS reported on Monday citing a statement from the federal operational headquarters for the fight against coronavirus.
“It was decided to increase the number of regular flights on a reciprocal basis to Egypt on the routes Moscow-Hurghada and Moscow-Sharm el-Sheikh from five to 15 flights per week on each route from Russian airports, where international flights have been resumed on a reciprocal basis to Hurghada and Sharm el-Sheikh with a frequency of one flight per week on each route,” TASS quoted the statement.
The Hurghada and Sharm el-Sheikh international airports on Monday received their first direct Russian flights from Moscow after more than six years since the crash of a Russian plane in 2015.
Tourists coming on Sharm el-Sheikh’s first Russian flight since the hiatus last Monday were received by the Governor of South Sinai General Khaled Fouda, and Russian Ambassador Borisenko.
Flights between Russia and Egypt had been fully suspended in November 2015 after a passenger plane operated by Russia’s Kogalymavia airline traveling from Sharm el-Sheikh to St. Petersburg exploded over the Sinai Peninsula, killing all 217 passengers and seven crewmembers on board.
The Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) qualified the incident as a terror attack.
In January 2018, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed an executive order to resume regular flights to Cairo but charter flights to Egyptian resorts remained suspended.
Over the past few years, Egypt has dramatically improved its system of checks for passengers and luggage, and tremendously improved its airport infrastructure.
On July 8, Putin struck down the order signed in 2015 which banned flights to Egypt’s resorts operated by Russian airlines.
