Cairo Aviation (Cairo International) and other charter carriers that serve Egypt will be able to access government subsidies with effect from November. The funding is aimed at stimulating greater travel to the troubled North African whose tourism industry has suffered significantly as a result of the country's turbulent last three years.

According to the head of the Sub-Accounts Unit of the Ministry of Tourism Adel Ragab, the programme will cover airports in South Sinai, the Red Sea, Luxor, Aswan, the Egyptian North Coast, and Marsa Alam.

"Subsidy rates for Hurghada, Sharm el Sheikh, Marsa Alam, Dabaa, and Mersa Matruh airports begin at a proportion of 50-90% of the plane’s occupancy rate. The same figure for subsidies at Luxor, Aswan, and Taba airports range from 40-100%," Ragab told Egypt's Daily News. “The new system is different from vacant seats incentive system, whereby subsidies were granted ranging between 10-15% of the value of the filled seat system.”

In effect, airlines will receive EUR24 per seat for flights to Hurghada, Sharm El Sheikh, Marsa Alam and the Mediterranean coast, and EUR31 per seat for longer flights.

Subsidies for flights to Luxor, Aswan and Taba are slightly higher to support those destinations which have been particularly hard hit by the downturn in business.