BA resumes flights to Egypt's Cairo

Flights resumed

British Airways flights to Egypt’s capital Cairo resumed on Friday, after the company said it had reviewed its security measures.

The flag carrier suspended flights on Saturday as a precautionary measure.

“Following a thorough assessment of the security arrangements, we are pleased that our service to and from Cairo will resume from Friday,” BA said.

“The safety and security of our customers and crew is always our priority, and we would never operate an aircraft unless it was safe to do so.”

An estimated 415,000 British nationals visited Egypt in 2018.

In its travel advice for British nationals heading to Egypt, the Foreign Office in London warns: “There’s a heightened risk of terrorism against aviation.

“Additional security measures are in place for flights departing from Egypt to the UK. You should co-operate fully with security officials at airports.”

BA suspends flights

British Airways announced Saturday it was suspending flights to Cairo for unspecified reasons related to safety and security.

The British carrier said it was canceling flights to the Egyptian capital for a week.

British Airways attributed its cancellations to what it called its constant review of security arrangements at all airports, calling them “a precaution to allow for further assessment”.

Passengers seem to be paying the price.

“I’ve been in Egypt for about two weeks and everything is going to be delayed just because of this. I am not quite sure when I am going to go back now,” said Khalid Keshta, a passenger.

Another passenger, Ayman Omar noted that,“it’s just caused us a big inconvenience and we’d like more information as soon as possible, just give us anything about when we’re going to get home, how we’re going to go home.”

German airline Lufthansa also suspended its flights to Cairo, saying normal operations would resume Sunday.

It said flights were suspended as a precaution, mentioning “safety” rather than “security”.

They come as Britain weighs its response to Iran’s seizure Friday of a British-flagged oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz and rising tensions stemming from US sanctions’ effect on Iran’s economy and oil exports.

The strait and Cairo are separated by 2,500 kilometres.