First regularly scheduled flight from Prague arrives in Aqaba with 190 tourists onboard

AMMAN — The first regularly scheduled tourist flight by SmartWings airlines on Saturday arrived at King Hussein International Airport (KHIA) in Aqaba, carrying 190 tourists coming from Prague.

Tourism and Environment Commissioner at the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA) Nidal Majali announced the start of the winter tourism season by welcoming the first reoccurring flight from Prague, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

He noted that this season has witnessed a "remarkable" start based on bookings projections from tourist agencies and Aqaba hotels.

Majali expressed hope that the tourism sector will recover after the setback of the COVID-19 pandemic, especially since tourists have resumed taking low-cost flights. 

He also said that he is expecting the season to witness a "high turnout" from European tourists as Aqaba is a preferred destination for them this time of year. 

CEO of Aqaba Airports Company Ramzi Arafat said that low-cost airlines transport passengers to Aqaba from 22 airports across the world, thanks to coordination with several stakeholders in the Tourism Ministry, the Civil Aviation Regulatory Commission, the Jordan Tourism Board and ASEZA.

Deputy General Manager of Friends Tours, which operated the flights in cooperation with SmartWings Airlines, said that trips will continue to arrive from Prague at a rate of one flight per week until the end of the year, expecting these rates to encourage operating flights from other European countries.