The weeks of uncertainty ended Thursday for the 149 American citizens on board the Spirit Airlines (NYSE: SAVE) flight from Bogotá, Colombia to Fort Lauderdale. Many of them were trying to secure a flight back to the United States, since the Colombian government closed the country’s borders on March 17 due to the COVID-19 coronavirus.
Spirit worked in collaboration with the United States Embassy in Colombia to organize the humanitarian flight that took off from El Dorado Airport (BOG) in Bogotá at 2:30 p.m. COT on Thursday, April 2, and landed at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL) at 7:30 p.m. ITS T.
“Our goal remains to help our Passengers return to their countries during these times of worldwide travel restrictions,” said Ted Christie, President and CEO of Spirit Airlines. “We are in constant communication with governments, embassies and airports in each country we fly to about the various restrictions that we must consider before we can resume operations.”
In order to maintain social distancing on board, Spirit blocked all seats in the middle, still trying to accommodate as many American citizens and legal permanent residents as possible to Fort Lauderdale. Spirit continues to follow the guidelines of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and maintains contact with authorities to ensure the safety of our Passengers and our team.
“As the United States Embassy in Bogota works 24/7 to help American citizens in Colombia during the COVID-19 crisis, we take a moment to thank the collaboration of American companies, particularly Spirit Airlines,” said Philip Goldberg , Ambassador of the United States to Colombia. “The airline’s generosity and entrepreneurial spirit in working with us to organize a humanitarian flight bringing American citizens to its country demonstrates the close connections between the United States and Colombia and the positive role that American companies have.”
Entry to the United States from Colombia is not restricted by current CDC mandates. Passengers who arrived on the flight completed entry procedures with Customs officials and are expected to follow the CDC’s recommendation that anyone returning from an international trip remain in voluntary quarantine for 14 days.