Passengers on the repatriation flight to the Netherlands boarding a Winair aircraft in St. Eustatius on Wednesday, May 6.
Some of the passengers gathered at the departure area of F.D. Roosevelt Airport.
- EUSTATIUS--Forty passengers left St. Eustatius on a repatriation flight bound for the Netherlands on Wednesday, May 6. This flight carried passengers not only to the Netherlands, but to other European countries.
Acting Government Commissioner Alida Francis said a “great deal” of work had gone into coordinating this flight with all the relevant stakeholders in Statia, the Representation Office of the Netherlands in St. Maarten, the Ministry of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations and the consulates of various European countries.
Passengers arrived at F.D. Roosevelt Airport early to ensure that they made their connecting Winair flight to St. Maarten. The 40 passengers were divided between three flights to adhere to the social-distancing regulations currently in effect. This is the first time in more than a month that a Winair aircraft has touched down in Statia.
The first flight to St. Maarten took off at 2:40pm, followed by a second flight at 3:05pm and the final flight at 3:55pm. All passengers met the requirement to wear face masks. All flights were on time to connect with the KLM flight scheduled to depart from St. Maarten at 6:45pm.
A tentative date for a repatriation flight to the United States has been set for Thursday, May 14, Francis said. Some 13 persons in Statia have made arrangements to leave the island. They will depart on two separate flights with persons from Statia and from Saba bound for the US. The May 14 flight is expected to depart at 8:50am.
