The first charter flight organised by the UK government to evacuate British nationals from the Middle East has taken off from Oman, Prime Minister Keir Starmer confirmed. The flight, initially scheduled for 7pm on Wednesday, was delayed before departing minutes ahead of a Downing Street press conference on Thursday. Starmer described the operation as 'one of the biggest of its kind, many times bigger than the evacuation from Afghanistan'.
More than 2,000 British nationals arrived in the UK on Wednesday on eight flights from the United Arab Emirates, and a further ten flights from the UAE are expected on Thursday. The government is continuing to organise additional flights as part of the ongoing airlift amid US and Israeli strikes on Iran and other regional states.
The evacuation effort has faced criticism from MPs and British nationals in the Middle East. A passenger on the Oman flight, named Mark, described the situation on Wednesday night as a 'complete shambles', citing issues with check-in and a lack of communication while stuck on a transfer bus. In parliament, Conservative leader Emily Thornberry passed on concerns from constituents at Muscat airport who struggled to identify British consular staff.
British Airways has announced it will run a fourth daily flight from Muscat to London Heathrow, a route it does not normally serve, departing at 10.30pm on Saturday. More than 140,000 Britons have registered their presence in the Middle East with the Foreign Office. Minister Hamish Falconer, a former diplomat, described the situation as 'a consular challenge on a scale not seen since Covid', adding that there were 'no instant solutions'.
The government is prioritising the most vulnerable passengers for the rescue flights, with those who qualify required to pay for their seats. The delay of the first flight from Oman was attributed to problems 'getting passengers on board', according to Home Office minister Alex Norris.
