The Government has announced a schedule for repatriation flights for the remainder of 2021 including those making use of a yet-to-arrive Samoa Airways aircraft expected to arrive later this month.

A flight to Australia for seasonal workers which will depart Samoa on 5 and 15 of June with an additional flight for seasonal workers scheduled for 9 July.

Towards the end of next month a repatriation flight facilitated by Air New Zealand, flying directly from Los Angeles to New Zealand through Samoa on 26 July, will bring in passengers who have been stuck in the U.S.A. and Europe since December 2020.

Additional scheduled flights from New Zealand for the last quarter of the year were also announced for 4 and 25 August, 22 September, 20 October, 10 November and 1 and 22 December.

It was recently announced that the new Samoa Airways aircraft will be used for repatriation flights between Australia and Samoa.

Caretaker Prime Minister, Tuilaepa Dr. Sailele Malielegaoi has confirmed that the national airline’s new aircraft will be arriving end of this month.

Samoa Airways is expected to have the aircraft on June 27, more than a year after its wet-lease of a Boeing 737-800 from Malaysia-registered Malindo Air expired. 

There will be chartered flights between Australia and Samoa following the Apia-Nuku'alofa-Brisbane-Nuku'alofa-Apia route.

These flights will be facilitated under the Australia Pacific Flights Programme and are scheduled to commence in July this year or at a suitable time.

The caretaker cabinet has also approved the extension of the state of emergency (S.O.E) for another four weeks to 4 July 2021.

In a press release distributed last Friday evening, the Ministry of the Prime Minister and Cabinet through the Press Secretariat confirmed that the caretaker Cabinet approved the extension of the coronavirus S.O.E. during their cabinet meeting last Wednesday.