Austrian Airlines extends temporary cessation of flight operations until 17 May

Originally planned to resume on 3 May, Austrian Airlines today announced to postpone the resumption of its flight operations until 17 May. “Unfortunately, worldwide entry bans imposed as a consequence of the coronavirus continue to be in force or have even been extended in some cases. For this reason, Austrian Airlines has to prolong the cessation of its regular scheduled flight operations once again, this time for an additional two weeks, namely from 3 May 2020 to 17 May 2020,” Austrian said. 

The precise time when regular flight operations will be resumed depends on the easing of travel restrictions and the related increase in demand. “In any case, we continue to stand ready to initiate a slow restart”, says Austrian Airlines CCO Andreas Otto.

Special flights will continue to be operated. For example, two long-haul planes from China will land this afternoon in Vienna with urgently needed medical protective clothing. A total of over 400 tonnes of relief supplies have been flown in from China and Malaysia up until now. Meanwhile, long-haul planes take off from Vienna to Asia every day. “The airlift is well established,” Andreas Otto adds. Moreover, about 30 repatriation flights have been carried out on behalf of the Austrian Federal Government since 13 March 2020, bringing home approx. 7,000 stranded passengers safely.