Egypt, Russia agree to resume direct flights by February after 2-year break

CAIRO, Dec. 15 (Xinhua) -- Egypt and Russia signed on Friday an agreement to resume direct flights between the two countries after a two-year halt, Egyptian official MENA news agency reported.

Under the agreement, which was signed by Egyptian Aviation Minister Sherif Fathy and Russian Transport Minister Maxim Sokolov in Moscow, air traffic will resume on February 1, 2018.

Flights between the two countries were suspended after an Airbus A321 plane crashed over the Sinai Peninsula on October 31, 2015, en route from Egypt's Sharm al-Sheikh city to St. Petersburg city in Russia.

All 224 people on board were killed in the crash.

At the time, Moscow said that the airliner crashed due to a terrorist bomb attack.

According to the Egyptian aviation minister, Moscow and Cairo will discuss the resumption of charter flights in April, 2018.

Flights will be resumed first to Cairo International Airport and then to the resort cities of Sharm al-Sheikh and Hurghada, according to MENA.

The Egyptian and Russian sides agreed to continue contacts in April to consider next steps in the field of aviation, MENA said.

During his visit in Egypt on Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that his country is ready to resume direct flights between Cairo and Moscow, pointing out the Russian Federal Security Agency reported that the Russian side is ready to resume flights. Enditem