Germany repatriates some 120,000 of estimated 200,000 tourists stranded overseas

The German government has repatriated some 120,000 of an estimated 200,000 tourists stranded overseas by coronavirus restrictions in recent days, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said on Monday.

Attention is now increasingly turning to travelers in more remote countries, like Chile, Mexico, New Zealand and Gambia, from where repatriation presented a greater logistical challenge, he said.

Berlin was working with travel companies to bring their customers home but was also chartering its own flights where necessary, Reuters quoted the minister as saying. Arranging flights has become more difficult as countries close their airspaces and airports, Maas added.