Closed since the beginning of April because of the coronavirus, Orly airport could reopen on June 26 if the health situation improves and the sector is well prepared for it, said Sunday the Secretary of State for Transport, Jean-Baptiste Djebbari. However, it set out several " prerequisites for reopening ".
Read also: Closed since Tuesday for an indefinite period, Orly airport is transformed into an aircraft parking lot
" One is that the health situation is improving and continues to improve, " he explained to the Grand Jury RTL-Le Figaro-LCI. “ Two is that we find or harmonize health measures with our European and Mediterranean neighbors. Everyone understands that if everyone has his measure in his corner, it will not work , "continued the Secretary of State for Transport.
He added that operators must finally offer " a solid flight program ". " I asked them to produce a flight schedule for June 15, " he said. " Under these conditions (...), we should be able to reopen Orly on June 26 but, I say, it is if all of these conditions are met, " warned Mr. Djebbari.
Asked when the French will be able to book plane tickets to or from Orly, in the event that the airport reopens on June 26, he simply replied that the authorities would " end May early June a much clearer vision of the health situation and the projections that we can make for the month of June and the summer ”. " So meet in late May early June to take all these decisions " which particularly interest candidates for departures on summer vacation, concluded Mr. Djebbari.
Wednesday, nine airlines based at the airport in the south of the Paris region asked the state, in an open letter, to set now Friday June 26 the date of reopening of the airport. Centenary airport in the south of Paris, Orly was put to sleep on April 1, when the air sector was hit hard by travel restrictions and health precautions linked to the coronavirus epidemic. The main airport in Ile-de-France and France, Roissy-Charles de Gaulle, located northeast of the capital, has remained open, but operates at a very reduced rate.