SWISS has launched yet another special repatriation flight, from Zurich to Kolkata (LX343) and Kochi to Zurich (LX8919) on behalf of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs (FDFA). On 25 April 2020, the Airbus A340-300 aircraft left Kolkata at 18:30 PM local time with 49 passengers.
It then landed in Kochi at 21:27 PM local time, where 164 passengers joined the flight. With a total of 213 passengers on board, the repatriation flight reached Zurich on 26th April at 7:08 AM CET, safely bringing home Swiss and other European nationals amid the global air traffic lockdown.
Speaking on the special repatriation flight, George Ettiyil, Senior Director Sales South Asia – Lufthansa Group, said, “After seamless and successful repatriation endeavors from major cities including Delhi and Mumbai, we are now expanding our efforts towards other regions such as Kochi and Kolkata. As a responsible corporate citizen, and an integral part of the critical infrastructure of the home countries of Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Belgium, the Lufthansa Group is proud to bring people home during this global crisis.”
Through its airlines – SWISS, Austrian Airlines, Lufthansa, and Eurowings – the Lufthansa Group has flown over 437 special flights back to the home countries of Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Belgium since March 14, 2020. Having repatriated over 90,000 holidaymakers from 106 airports worldwide to date, Lufthansa Group is leveraging its wide-bodied aircrafts including the Boeing 747, Boeing 777, Airbus A380, Airbus A330/340, and Airbus A350 to offer maximum capacity on the return flights.
