In another blow to Egypt’s traumatized tourist industry, British Airways has decided to abandon its route to the country’s main resort, Sharm el Sheikh.
Like other UK airlines, BA suspended its service from Gatwick to Sharm el Sheikh on the instructions of the UK government on 4 November last year. The ban was imposed following the crash of a Metrojet Airbus A320 in the Sinai desert shortly after take-off from Sharm el Sheikh. All 224 passengers and crew on the charter flight to St Petersburg died.
It is widely believed that the plane was downed by a bomb placed on board at the Egyptian airport.
Despite the Egyptian government spending tens of millions of dollars on enhancing security at airports, especially Sharm el Sheikh, the ban on flights to the resort has been kept in place.
The winter season for British tourists to Sharm el Sheikh and the other Sinai resorts was effectively wiped out. The government in Cairo has been optimistic that the UK ban on flights would be lifted in time for the winter season, though with only four months to go before the winter schedules take effect there has been increasing concern about the travel industry’s preparedness to respond.
A report in the Daily News Egypt on 15 June quoted a BA regional manager as saying that flights to Sharm el Sheikh would resume on 15 September.
But in a statement BA now says: “The safety and security of our customers will always be our top priorities and we have suspended our flights from Gatwick to Sharm el Sheikh indefinitely.
“Customers who hold bookings on any cancelled services for the coming winter season can claim a full refund or can use the money to cover a new booking with us for an alternative destination.”
Daily flights on BA between Heathrow and Cairo continue. Other airlines are looking to resume services to Sharm el Sheikh, with 30 October talked about as a possible start date; it is the day that winter schedules are introduced worldwide.
