Federal Government to add 20 repatriation flights to bring Australians stranded abroad during coronavirus home

The Federal Government will schedule another 20 repatriation flights to bring stranded Australians home.

Acting Foreign Minister Simon Birmingham said flights from “priority areas” around the world will be organised by the Commonwealth over the next couple of months.

Travellers will be taken to the Howard Springs facility in the Northern Territory, as well as to locations in Canberra and Tasmania.

Mr Birmingham said the extra repatriation flights were “over and above” the existing caps on returning international travellers.

A week earlier, National Cabinet slashed the cap on international passengers.

Caps in New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia were temporarily halved to help states manage the flow of travellers potentially…