The Australian Government has scheduled an additional 20 flights to bring Australians home from overseas, with passengers to be selected from “priority” areas.
Acting Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Birmingham today confirmed that the extra flights will follow the strictest COVID-19 protocols, including quarantine camps in the Northern Territory.
To date, Mr Birmingham said almost half a million Australians have been flown home on federally-financed flights since international borders were closed.
“Throughout this course we’ve been very mindful that Australians overseas have sought to come home,” Mr Birmingham said.
“I’m very pleased to say since March, 446,000 Australians have made that journey home.
“We are scheduling a further 20 scheduled flights to bring Australians home, with a focus on priority areas.”
Mr Birmingham said in the past 24 hours, Australia had recorded just one new case of COVID-19. Globally, more than 730,000 cases were recorded in the same time frame.
“The COVID-19 situation worldwide continues to be enormously challenging, as much of the world grapples with new strains and variants,” Mr Birmingham said.
“Australia’s success is our testament to use the advice of health officials every step of the way.”