Dhaka, April 22 – A total of 301 US citizens left here after midnight as the US government arranged the fourth chartered flight for those who opted to go back home on their personal choice amid the COVID-19 pandemic.The special flight aircraft left Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA) with 301 US citizens at 12:52 am, a spokesperson of Civil Aviation Authority, Bangladesh (CAAB) told media.
The flight is being operated by Omni Air, a US-based charted airline, will reach at Dulles International Airport, Washington, DC with the US citizens, mostly expatriate Bangladeshis residing in the USA permanently, via Kadena Air Base, Japan and Anchorage, Alaska
With today’s flight, so far, US citizens left Bangladesh as part of the US State Department’s worldwide drive since outbreak of deadly coronavirus to take back home their citizens who want to reunite their dear ones in this global crisis period.
On March 30, 269 US citizens, who had been stranded here due to the global outbreak of coronavirus first, left Bangladesh by the first chartered flight of Qatar Airways while on April 5, 322 and on April 13, 328 US citizens departed Dhaka by identical flights for the USA.
Earlier today the first batch of 264 stranded British nationals also left HSIA by a special chartered flight of British Airways while 154 Turkish departed by a Turkish Airlines special flight.
On April 11, Bangladesh extended ongoing ban on flight operation till April 30 to and from all European countries and the nations that restricted the entry of Bangladeshis to their territories as well as on all domestic routes over the coronavirus fear.
Earlier, citizens of Canada, Australia, Japan, Malaysia, Bhutan and different European countries also left here by their personal choice through chartered flights amid outbreak of the deadly coronavirus. – News Desk
