Egypt Tourism Hopes Russia to Give Go-Ahead to Charter Flights Soon

Egypt’s tourism hopes that Russian inspectors will come to assess security at airports for the last time in August before Russia restarts charter flight to the country, an Egyptian tourist industry source told local media Tuesday.

CAIRO (Sputnik) — Russian air safety inspectors are due in Egypt’s two main seaside resorts on August 28 to see what measures were taken after a tragic downing of a Russian passenger jet over the Sinai desert last year.

"It will probably be the final visit before Russia restarts charter flights to Sharm El-Sheikh and Hurghada airports," the tourism source told the Egyptian daily newspaper Al-Ahram.

Russia grounded charter flights to Red Sea cities after an Airbus A321 plane flying to St.Petersburg crashed soon after taking off from Sharm El-Sheikh on October 31. All 224 people aboard died as a result of what was classified by the Russian authorities as a terrorist attack.

The United Kingdom followed suit and grounded flights to Sharm El-Sheikh last fall, citing lapses in airport security. Suspensions dealt a heavy blow to Egyptian economy which relies heavily on tourism for budget income.