Flights between Cairo and Moscow will resume mid-September, a statement by flagship airliner EgyptAir read Saturday, a few days after Russia announced the resumption of flights to several countries. According to the statement, flights operated by EgyptAir and Russian Aeroflot between Cairo and Moscow have been given the green light after a six-month suspension due to the coronavirus pandemic. The statement said coordination is underway between the two airliners and civil aviation authorities to finalise necessary preparations for the re-operation of flights. Russia has resumed international flights to Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and the Maldives, according to a government order Thursday. The government said it had authorised three flights a week to Cairo, as well as two flights a week to Dubai and to the Maldives's Velana International Airport. Russia halted all regular and charter international flights with other countries at the end of March in the wake of the worldwide Covid-19 outbreak, allowing only repatriation trips. Egypt began 1 July a gradual resumption of regular international flights with countries that have reopened their airports after halting all international flights on 19 March in a bid to curb the spread of the virus. Foreign tourists in tour groups have been allowed entry into the three coastal Egyptian governorates with the lowest coronavirus infection rates in the country. Egypt has required travellers arriving in the country to present a negative Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) lab test result certificate for the novel coronavirus starting 1 September. However, travelers entering Egypt at any of four airports in the Red Sea governorate and South Sinai can take a coronavirus test upon arrival. Egypt hopes that the resumption of regular flights will boost its coronavirus-hit tourism sector, an essential source of foreign currency.
