March 5 (Reuters) - A British flight to repatriate UK nationals after the outbreak of war in the Middle East did not take off as scheduled from Oman on Wednesday night and has been rescheduled for
UK's Oman repatriation flight pushed back after technical delays
Operational Challenges and Impact on British Nationals
LONDON, March 5 (Reuters) - Britain said on Thursday its first repatriation flight from Oman had been rescheduled due to operational issues, including delays in getting passengers on board.
Details of the Repatriation Flight
The government had chartered a flight from Muscat to London - due to leave on Wednesday evening - for British nationals and their spouses or partners and children, with the most vulnerable people having priority.
Technical and Operational Issues
But the Foreign Office said in a statement on Thursday that the flight was not able to depart due to technical issues.
Statements from Officials
Speaking to Sky News, Alex Norris, a minister in the interior ministry, said there were also delays in getting passengers on board as part of the operational challenges.
The flight was now expected to depart later on Thursday.
Wider Context: Stranded European Citizens in the Gulf
Hundreds of thousands of European citizens have been stranded in the Gulf states since Israel and the U.S. struck Iran on Saturday and Iran then attacked its neighbours.
British Citizens in the Gulf Region
Britain said some 300,000 of its citizens were in Gulf countries, either on holiday, in transit or permanently based there.
Airline Operations and Future Flights
British Airways, which is currently unable to fly from Dubai, Doha, Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Amman and Tel Aviv, said it would run flights from Muscat on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and that they were fully booked.
Reporting Credits
(Reporting by Sam Tabahriti in London and Gursimran Kaur in Bengaluru; Editing by Christopher Cushing, Kate Mayberry and Kate Holton)
