Government Transports Citizens from Japanese Cruise Ship via Presidential Aircraft Today (Update)

Presidential Aircraft Air Force No. 3
[Photo by Central Accident Response Headquarters]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heung-soon] On the 18th, the government plans to deploy the presidential aircraft (Air Force 3) to bring some of our nationals aboard the Japanese cruise ship (Diamond Princess), where a large number of COVID-19 cases have occurred, back to Korea.

The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters for COVID-19 announced that they are in discussions with the Japanese government about transporting passengers who are our nationals and wish to return home from the Diamond Princess, which is docked at Yokohama Port, Japan.

The headquarters added that other matters such as the scale of transportation, the formation of a rapid response team, and the location of temporary living facilities are also under discussion. There are a total of 14 of our nationals on this cruise ship, including 9 passengers and 5 crew members.

According to the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, there are approximately 3,700 passengers aboard the Diamond Princess, of whom 1,723 have been tested for COVID-19, with 454 confirmed positive cases. It is reported that no Korean passengers have tested positive yet.