About 1000 Cypriots and legal residents are to be repatriated this week, Transport Minister Yiannis Karousos told CyBC TV on Easter Sunday.
He also said that he was confident that all those who have asked to be repatriated between April 15 and April 30 will be able to make it home within that time frame.
The government plans to bring about 2000 people home every fortnight, in line with availability at quarantine facilities.
Everyone must do two weeks in quarantine. The state currently has 2000 rooms at various hotels round the island that it uses for this purpose.
Karousos said that flights are scheduled from Thesaloniki as well as from Frankfurt where passengers from other countries will gather in order to board the flight home.
Arrangements are also being made for a plane to stop off in three different countries – Romania, Moldova and Ukraine to pick up passengers to bring to Larnaca.
Karousos said that one flight being operated from London will repatriate students who are in the US and who will be flying there.
There are also plans for flights from Scotland and possibly northern England, he added.
“We are waiting for the lists from the Foreign Ministry so that we can do the groupings,” he said.
There were no flights today and none are planned for tomorrow.
However two flights, one from Manchester and one from London on Saturday each brought back 116 passengers.
Airplanes fly at only two thirds capacity for health reasons.
