Morocco Allows Private Flights Amid Travel Ban, Costs Soar to $2,000 per Seat

Morocco closed its airspace on November 29 to limit the spread of the new Covid-19 variant, Omicron, thus blocking many Moroccans abroad and foreign residents and tourists on its territory. But some stranded travelers in European cities have found a way out. They are booking private flights to Casablanca or Marrakech, which can accommodate between 8 and 13 passengers, by buying a ticket that can cost up to 2,000 euros, reports El País.

A Spanish businessman living in Morocco, who requested anonymity, was able to travel last week from Malaga to Casablanca on one of these flights operated by the Moroccan air taxi company, Sarah Airways, based in Casablanca. "I had to come to Morocco urgently. I learned that the flight cost the equivalent of 1,500 euros... I paid a third of the amount at the beginning of the process and the rest, five days later, when they confirmed the location," he explains.

To read: Exclusive: Private Jets Skirt Morocco’s Border Closure, Raising Health Concerns

"We were 13 on the flight. Most are textile and agricultural entrepreneurs," adds the businessman, specifying that the Moroccan authorities required a negative PCR test performed 48 hours before the flight and another antigen test on arrival in Casablanca. "If one of the passengers tested positive for the antigen, we would have to undergo a 10-day quarantine in a hotel, at our own expense. On the flight, we all wore masks, except the pilot, co-pilot and flight attendant," he details.

The businessman, however, denounces the price gouging on these "secret" flights in the face of growing demand. He hopes that Morocco will soon reopen its borders, even if it maintains "very difficult health restrictions". Because, he believes, this situation "endangers foreign investments in the country" and causes serious damage to professionals in tourism, hotels, agriculture and the automotive industry.