Traveling to and from Socotra: A risky journey across the sea and exorbitantly expensive airline tickets (report)

Traveling to and from the Yemeni island of Socotra, located in the Indian Ocean and under the control of the UAE-backed Transitional Council, is one of the crises that the people of the archipelago are constantly suffering from, without any solutions to end their suffering, in light of the complete absence of the government’s role towards its citizens.

The suffering of the people of Socotra with travel is not new, but it has been ongoing for years, and has doubled since the outbreak of war in the country as a result of the Houthi militia coup in 2014, and the cessation of regular flights to and from the archipelago.

Socotra has only two air and sea outlets for travel to and from the island. The sea outlet is used to travel either to Hadhramaut or to Al Mahrah, and here travelers are constantly exposed to drowning accidents and many dangers during their travel. As for the air outlet, there is only one Yemenia flight through it every week, departing from Aden Airport, passing through Al Rayyan Airport in Hadhramaut, then Socotra.

Continuous suffering

The travel crisis to Socotra is decades old, but it worsened after the war that the country witnessed, resulting from the Houthi militia coup in 2014, in light of the absence of the role of the legitimate government, and the non-interference of the de facto authority harnessed to serve Abu Dhabi.

According to the Undersecretary of Socotra Governorate, Issa bin Muslim, the people of Socotra suffer from moving to and from the island before and after the unification, noting that it would stop for a few months and then return for several months, and so on.

Bin Muslim said in an interview with "Yemeni Youth Net" that the reasons for the current air travel crisis are due to the fact that Yemenia Airlines is only operating one flight per week to the island, and the prices of Yemenia Airlines tickets have risen insanely.

He added that the prices of tickets for the national carrier, Yemenia Airlines, reach more than $400 for a round trip per person on a domestic flight, noting that this has doubled the suffering of the people of Socotra.

Bin Muslim accused the leadership and management of the Ministry of Transport, Yemenia Airlines, and the local authority in the province of being behind the travel crisis and doubling the suffering of the people of the archipelago.

Undersecretary Bin Muslim said that alleviating the suffering of citizens and meeting their simplest needs is a moral, national and religious responsibility of the state towards its people.

Bin Muslim called on the Leadership Council, represented by the Council Chairman, Dr. Rashad Al-Alimi, and the rest of the Council members, and the Prime Minister, Dr. Ahmed bin Mubarak, to develop urgent and radical solutions to end the suffering of the people of Socotra, reduce the prices of Yemenia Airlines tickets and calculate their value in the national currency instead of the dollar, and increase the number of its flights by at least two flights per week.

According to a local source, before the war, Yemenia Airlines used to operate two regular flights to and from the island, in addition to Al-Saeeda Airlines, before the flights stopped and were limited to one flight, which was under great pressure.

Risks of sea travel

Citizens are exposed to many risks while traveling to and from Socotra by sea, as a result of their movement in small ships and fishing boats that are not qualified for travel and lack the minimum safety equipment.

In the latest incident, a ship carrying 30 people from the port of Ash Shihr in Hadhramaut to Socotra Island almost sank last Saturday, as a result of water leaking into it. The ship was transporting them from the port of Ash Shihr in Hadhramaut to Socotra Island. The Socotra Coast Guard forces were able to rescue them and transport them via small boats to the island.

A local source described the process of traveling by sea in small boats and ships designated for fishing, not for travel, as “suicide.”

The source, who preferred not to be named due to his work with an international organization and is not authorized to speak to the media, said that among the dangers that the people of Socotra are exposed to while traveling by sea is getting lost at sea for days and sometimes weeks as a result of engine failure, running out of fuel, or getting lost from the usual route.

He added in an interview with "Yemeni Youth Net" that among the suffering of traveling to and from Socotra is contracting diseases, panic and fear, in addition to contracting psychological illnesses due to the increase in the number of travel hours, which reaches more than 35 hours and sometimes exceeds 45 hours, and may even reach more than two, three and four days.

The source pointed out other risks facing small ships, such as being run over and swept away by large ships and giant cargo carriers at night.

He also explained that the sea fluctuations and strong currents lead to changing the course of the trip and delaying it for days, pointing out that many accidents have occurred due to these currents, engine malfunctions and many problems that keep the traveler's family very worried until the ship arrives.

He stressed that during the wind season, which begins in June and ends in October, the sea waves rise and travel becomes impossible. Also, during the winter, the sea is volatile, especially between December and January, when the sea currents are strong and the waves are also high.

According to the source, citizens travel on ships that are not intended for travel, which are 12-ton fishing boats that transport catch from Socotra to Mukalla or to Al Mahrah, noting that traveling on them exposes them to many risks, as they are not safe and are not equipped to transport passengers, and do not have safety equipment, and only skilled fishermen who know the sea and are accustomed to it know how to deal with them.

Those who travel between Socotra and the Yemeni mainland are often not vacationers, but rather patients receiving treatment, students studying, or workers visiting their families outside Socotra.

In order to travel, they sometimes sell some of their belongings to cover the cost of tickets and what they need for accommodation and food during the travel period. The interruption of flights and their sudden cancellation often leads them to sleep on the ground and go to the coasts in search of fishing boats that leave for Socotra, according to the same source.