A second evacuation flight by the Republic of Singapore Air Force has safely arrived in Singapore after bringing citizens home from the Middle East.
According to the Ministry of Defence, the aircraft landed at 5.59am after being deployed to Jeddah. The aircraft used for the operation was an Airbus A330 Multi Role Tanker Transport, which was sent to evacuate Singaporeans stranded in the region.
MINDEF said that 81 Singaporeans and their dependents were on board the flight. These passengers had earlier registered for evacuation assistance as the situation in the Middle East affected travel and airspace.
After ensuring that Singaporeans who registered for the flight were given priority, the remaining seats were offered to other nationals who also needed assistance leaving the region. These included citizens from Australia, Brunei, Indonesia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Vietnam.
MINDEF explained that the decision to offer spare seats to foreign nationals was done “in the spirit of solidarity, just as how other countries have assisted Singaporeans in returning home in past crises.”
With this second evacuation mission completed, the Singapore Armed Forces has now helped a larger number of Singaporeans return home safely. Over the two evacuation flights conducted by the Singapore Armed Forces, a total of 299 Singaporeans and their dependents have been brought back from the Middle East.
Singapore had also earlier arranged additional repatriation efforts for citizens in nearby areas. Two flights were mounted from Muscat to support Singaporeans located in Oman and the United Arab Emirates.
In addition, a separate flight was arranged to Oman to assist foreign visitors who were affected by airspace disruptions in the region.
The evacuation operations were part of Singapore’s efforts to help its citizens return home safely while also extending assistance to other nationals where possible.
