The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through its High Commission in the UK, is pleased to announce that it has negotiated access to 20 seats on a British Airways charter to Barbados for stranded Grenadian nationals in the UK.
The flight’s load on the outbound leg, will be shared among several Caricom countries. The British Airways flight will leave London on Wednesday, 3 June 2020 at 11:20 am and land in Barbados, from which point, nationals from the various Islands will immediately access LIAT or other regional airlines to their respective countries.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Health Grenada, have worked together to ensure that there is a policy which governs the repatriation process. Stranded nationals registered through our diplomatic missions will have prioritised access to securing any possible or available flights back to Grenada. In the case of the United Kingdom, this British Airways opportunity came up through a coordinated logistical process of the Caricom High Commissioners in the United Kingdom, upon learning that the UK had chartered flights to repatriate its nationals from the Caribbean.
The Government of Grenada is cognisant of the challenges faced by many of our nationals in foreign countries, during this Covid-19 pandemic. We have always said that we are prepared to accept our stranded nationals back home, provided they have the means to find their way home, and provided that we have the capacity to quarantine them.
We are aware, as well, that we will, by no means, on our own, be able to meet the demands of all nationals abroad who wish to be repatriated. We also accept that we have a responsibility to accept them as our brothers and sisters, once they can return home. In this process, we are ever mindful that there is the likelihood that any of them returning home, can be a carrier of Covid-19. As we have seen with the cruise ships, while we expect there will be further cases of Covid-19 in any mechanism that we consider or approve for entry into Grenada, we have also shown that, so far, we have the systems in place to catch Covid-19 at our borders, as much as is possible.
While the borders are still closed, we are moving forward with a phased acceptance of stranded nationals, in the first instance. The phased approach provides government with the necessary time to continue building capacity in terms of testing equipment, contact tracing and monitoring procedures, as well as the tightening of protocols.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be guided by the protocols issued by the Government of Grenada, through the Ministry of Health, including conditions for quarantine, for people entering Grenada in this first phase.
All passengers will be tested immediately upon arrival in Grenada, and quarantined for 14 days. Passengers will also be required to bear the cost of their quarantine, if there is any.
The Government of Grenada understands the anxieties that stranded nationals abroad have experienced in this uncertain Covid-19 environment and have certainly been receptive to welcoming them home, when it is safe to do so.
We urge all our nationals, wherever you are, to stay alert and safe, and we ask that you please observe ALL health and safety guidelines issued by health officials.
GIS
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I think if the correct measures if testing are put in place, then Grenadiann nationals should be allowed to come back home.
My mother is stranded here but flew with Virgin…why are they not offering the same as BA???
She has been quarantined since the lockdown started and is in fine health….shes longing to return to Grenada!
Grenada is not on the airlines’ wish list of holiday destinations for non-quarantine travel.
No UK, European or USA holidaymakers in Grenada for the foreseeable future = very bad news for the Grenadian economy.
Lets look on the positive side of things. This is a brilliant idear. Suppose if one cannot afford the fares for travelling, it is easier to say. When the monkey can’t reach the grapes, they say they’re sour. BRILLIANT systems put in place to receive the nationals.
Vaccinate yourself first and then maybe just maybe someone will follow you .seems like you dont know what it is to be stranded away from all you know for months ,but it good to hear from the idiots in this world .
Is this a “long” way of saying “welcome COVID-19” again since there are likely to be at least asymptomatic virus carriers on such flights? Why is it that we never learn? The world needs a vaccine before we start doing this.
Muy bien, yo soy ciudadano argentino y estoy en Grenada hace casi 3 meses y no encuentro la manera de regresar a Argentina. El 2 de junio hay un vuelo de repatriación de Barbados a Argentina pero necesito llegar a Barbados. Si alguien puede ayudar muchas gracias. Mail [email protected]