UK charters first repatriation flight for Brits stranded due to West Asia conflict

London, Mar 4 (PTI) The UK government said it has chartered a commercial flight out of Oman on Wednesday to help British nationals wanting to leave following the attacks across West Asia in the wake of the US-Israel strikes on Iran.

The Foreign, Development and Commonwealth Office (FCDO) said the flight will leave the Omani capital of Muscat at 2300 local time (1900 GMT) on Wednesday for British nationals who are keen to return home.  "British nationals and their spouse or partner, and children under the age of 18 are eligible," the FCDO said in a statement.

"All passengers must hold a valid travel document. Dependents who are not British nationals will require a valid visa/permission to enter or remain that was granted for more than six months.

“The FCDO will contact British nationals in Oman to secure them a seat on this charter flight – prioritising those most vulnerable first," it stated.

The officials stressed that British nationals should not make their way to the Muscat International Airport unless they are informed to do so, with those who have registered their presence in the region in the past few days called to fill out the official repatriation form.

“A specialised Rapid Deployment Team is in Muscat to provide on-the-ground support to British nationals. We will continue to work with airlines to find more routes for people to return home," the FCDO said.

An official "crisis centre" continues to operate "around the clock" to provide up-to-date information for the around 130,000 British nationals who have registered as stranded across Bahrain, Israel, Kuwait, Palestine, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) since the strikes began on Saturday.

"The safety and security of British nationals is our top priority... the airspace is still closed in many of these countries, but I am in close contact with my counterparts across the region," Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper told Parliament on Tuesday.

"We are also working with airlines on increasing capacity out of Muscat for British nationals, with priority being given to vulnerable nationals. A government charter flight will leave Muscat in the coming days, prioritising those vulnerable nationals.

"We will continue to work 24/7 on supporting British nationals in the region. This is a very fast-moving situation, and we have unprecedented numbers of British nationals in the region,” she said.

The UK, meanwhile, said it will deploy a Royal Navy warship to the eastern Mediterranean to bolster security around its Royal Air Force (RAF) base at Akrotiri in Cyprus. HMS Dragon, a Type 45 Destroyer, will be sent to the region amid the ongoing American and Israeli strikes and retaliatory Iranian attacks.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) said two Royal Navy Wildcat helicopters are also being sent, equipped with Martlet missiles designed to counter drone attacks.

"We are moving quickly to further reinforce our defensive presence in the Eastern Mediterranean," said Defence Secretary John Healey.

"HMS Dragon brings world-class air defence capability, and our Wildcat helicopters are armed with Martlet missiles to counter the growing drone threat. I am deeply proud of the professionalism and bravery of our Armed Forces personnel who have, in recent days, successfully taken action across the region to protect our allies and defend British interests," he said.

The helicopters are equipped to hunt and shoot down aerial threats, adding a powerful counter-drone capability to the region.

The additional defensive deployment comes after the runway of the British air base at RAF Akrotiri was hit by a drone, causing what has been officially described as "minimal damage". PTI AK