Speaking in parliament during the presentation of his ministry’s budget, Lakkotrypis said there has been interest in launching nine flights per week in November after a Russian plane that took off from Sharm al-Sheikh crashed over the Sinai Peninsula on October 31, killing all 224 on board.

Western officials think a bomb likely brought the airliner down.

Russia, the UK, Turkey, and several European countries suspended flights to Sharm al-Sheikh and other destinations following the crash.

Russia has returned 11,000 of its tourists from Egypt in the last 24 hours, RIA news agency said on Sunday, a fraction of the 80,000 Russians who were stranded by the Kremlin’s decision on Friday to halt all flights to Egypt.

Lakkotrypis stressed the need to extend the tourist period beyond the summer season but also to increase the amount of tourist accommodation.

Hotel occupancy in September was around 95%, MPs heard, as Cyprus saw an 18% rise in arrivals from Britain, its main market, and 35% from Germany.

There has also been interest for flights in February – usually a poorly served month in terms of flights – from the UK market, the minister said.

Lakkotrypis put it down to agreements made with large tour operators, but also, in the case of Britain, the favourable exchange rate between sterling and the euro and the drop in fuel prices.

Cyprus expects arrivals from the UK to exceed 1mln in 2016, the minister said.

MPs also heard that the government will be ready to issue a casino licence in August or September next year.

The deadline for expression of interest is December 18 2015.

Source: Cyprus Mail