The application for a relief flight to repatriate citizens of the United States who are marooned here due to COVID-19 travel restrictions is still being looked at, Director General of the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) Egbert Field clarified on Tuesday.
It had been reported that an application by the US embassy to facilitate the relief flight for May 22 was denied.
However, the GCAA head explained to Stabroek News that the application is among others that is being looked at by the National COVID-19 Task Force (NCTF).
Field remarked that because of other pressing demands arising in the country during this pandemic, the NCTF cannot solely focus all its attention on flight schedules.
He also reminded that in the past the Task Force has granted approval for repatriation flights up to a day before the flight was scheduled for.
Field anticipates that approval for the repatriation flight should be forthcoming in a matter of days.
“We requested clearance for a seventh commercial relief flight to operate from Georgetown to Miami next Friday May 22, 2020. However, we regret to inform you that it was not approved,” the US Embassy informed interested citizens in an alert that was released on Sunday on social media.
“We are aware of the hardship land and airspace border closures have created for U.S. Citizens who need to return to the United States after Guyana closed it airspace to commercial flights on March 18th. To date we have requested special permission from the Guyana Civil Aviation Authority to operate service for six commercial relief flights to transport Americans and their families home,” the alert stated.
