The Minister of Transport, Abdulwahhab Al-Durra, on Sunday called for scheduling commercial and civil flights, and highlighting them in the flight schedules of Yemeni airlines, so that any Yemeni citizen at home or abroad can book with ease.
Al-Durra said, in a press conference held today in Sana’a: “We demand the programming and scheduling of flights approved under the humanitarian truce, and to give them early permits, so that Yemeni Airlines, the national carrier of the Republic of Yemen, can organize flight management in an economical feasibility to benefit citizens, especially the sick and the elderly.”
The Transport Minister pointed out that an agreement was signed on Saturday between the Higher Medical Committee, the Civil Aviation Authority and Yemeni Airlines to allocate 30 percent of the seats on all commercial flights during the coming period for sick cases, and 70 percent for students, travelers and expatriates stranded for more than seven Years.
He said, “We will not accept the mechanism of the UN envoy’s office in Sana’a to approve flights and give permits, because it led to trips being disrupted during the previous truce, and only six trips were made to the Jordanian capital Amman, and one trip after strenuous efforts to Cairo.”
The Minister of Transport indicated that the number of travelers, during the last truce, through seven flights, reached 2,424 passengers to and from Sana’a, Amman and Cairo, while the lists of sick cases with the Supreme Medical Committee included tens of thousands of patients who needed to travel for treatment abroad, not to mention the thousands of expatriates and students who were waiting for the opening Sana’a International Airport.
Al-Durra called for the permanent and continuous opening of ports, roads and airports for commercial and civil flights, without specifying a limited period or armistice, stressing the need to allow importers to import through the port of Hodeidah, as it is the closest to the provinces and the most populous, and at the same time, it is more economically beneficial and less costly to serve citizens.
He also emphasized the need to open the main crossings and closed roads in all provinces and districts to alleviate suffering, trouble and losses for the people of Yemen.
