Many are concerned about and interested in the duration of the ban on passenger flights from the UK landing in Hungary, which was ordered following several other countries because of a faster-spreading variant of the coronavirus discovered in London and the south of England.
Government Decree 623/2020 was published in Magyar Közlöny on the 21st of December. It reveals details of the ban on flights departing from the UK announced on Monday, writes airportal.hu.
“Civil aircraft engaged in scheduled air passenger services from the territory of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland may not land in the territory of Hungary, with the exception of aircraft at risk,”
says a government decree issued on the day following its promulgation, entered into force on the 22nd of December from midnight. Airlines operating on routes between Budapest and the United Kingdom cancelled all their affected flights on Tuesday. Although the ban does not apply to departures from Hungary, flights to the island country do not run from Budapest either, as the planes could only return without passengers.
Ryanair’s planes to Bristol and London-Stansted no longer departed on Tuesday, and Wizz Air also cancelled its flight to and from Luton. EasyJet has not cancelled its flights from Budapest to London-Gatwick; the planes will fly empty to Budapest Airport and then return with passengers. The situation is considered vis major; the passengers on the flights concerned will not be compensated.
However, airlines must reimburse the fare for cancelled flights in the form of cash, credit, or rebooking must be provided.
Regulations shall expire on the 8th of February 2021. The third paragraph, on the other hand, will enter into force on the 1st day after the promulgation of the decree, only on the 5th of January 2021, while the decree itself will enter into force today. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said on Monday that epidemiological preparedness for the coronavirus (although not an emergency) in 2021 is likely to persist throughout the year.
The NOTAM notice on the ban was published in the official aviation notification system at 11:52 pm local time on 21 December. The description of the travel restrictions in force since September has been supplemented by a ban in a government decree, according to which passenger flights departing from the territory of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland may not land in Hungary.
The ban on passenger flights from the UK to Hungary may last until the 8th of February 2021, unless lifted earlier by revoking Regulation 623/2020 or extending it in a new government decree. Several European countries took similar measures.