Sat, Nov 02, 2024 | Jumada al-Uola 1, 1446 | DXB ktweather icon0°C

Russia: Putin lifts ban on charter flights to Egypt six years after crash

Top Stories

Moscow - The flights were stopped after a plane crash in 2015 killed 224 people.

Published: Thu 8 Jul 2021, 6:56 PM

  • By
  • Reuters

President Vladimir Putin scrapped Russia's ban on charter flights to Egypt on Thursday, six years after suspending them for national security seasons in the aftermath of a plane crash.

The flights were stopped after a Metrojet plane taking Russian holiday makers back from Sharm El Sheikh to St Petersburg broke up over the Sinai Peninsula in October 2015, killing 224 people.


Russia concluded the plane was destroyed by a bomb. A group affiliated with Daesh militants claimed responsibility.

Putin's decree lifting the ban will be a boon for Egypt's year-round resorts in Sharm El Sheikh and Hurghada which attracted large numbers of Russians in the past.

Russia and Egypt agreed to resume all flights in a call in April between Putin and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al Sisi, Egypt's presidency said at the time.



Next Story