DHAKA, June 10, 2020 (BSS) – A total of 182 more Australian citizens today left here for home as the Australian High Commission here arranged the third chartered flight to repatriate its nationals amid ongoing flight suspension due to COVID-19 pandemic.
A Sri Lankan Airlines flight departed HazratShahjalal International Airport (HSIA) today with 182 Australian citizens, said a press release of Australian High Commission here said.
The flight also carried two New Zealand citizens, who will transit Australia to New Zealand, it added.
“We’ve been doing everything we can to help Australians to return home as the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic continue to be felt around the world,” said Australian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Jeremy Bruer while seeing off the returnees at the airport.
The envoy thanked Bangladesh foreign ministry, civil aviation authority, airport officials, local law enforcement agencies and Sri Lankan Airlines for facilitating repatriation of the stranded Australians.
Since 16 April, some 700 Australians have returned home with the assistance of the Australian High Commission here, said the release.
The Australian government has helped over 23,000 Australians to return home from overseas, including from cruise ships and by using one-off arrangements with commercial airlines, since the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, it added.
On May 25, Bangladesh extended the ongoing ban on flight operation for the seventh consecutive time till June 15 over the coronavirus fear while it resumed flights on domestic routes on June 1.
Other countries, including India, the UK, India, Japan, Canada, Turkey, Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, Bhutan, Myanmar and different European countries also operated several special chartered flights amid the flight suspension to repatriate their citizens from here.
Bangladesh government also so far repatriated stranded Bangladeshis from India, the USA, the UK, Australia, Canada, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia.