While a mass return to international air traffic is, so to speak, up in the air as lockdowns aimed at preventing the spread of the COVID-19 Coronavirus begin easing around the world, the budget carrier Wizz Air said it will fly from London’s Luton Airport to Greece this summer.

Flights will depart for Faro, Portugal from 16 June, Wizz said, and for Zakynthos, Heraklion, Corfu and Rhodes.

Airlines and governments are still working on what health protocols would be for airline passengers and if there would be a limit on how many seats could be filled to keep a safety distance between people.

Wizz Air  announced the new routes as part of its planning for the easing of restrictions and passenger confidence building, including compulsory face masks for passengers and staff, reported the news agency Reuters.

Wizz, based in Budapest, Hungary, became one of the first European airlines to restart commercial routes from London Luton and Vienna on May 1, carrying people from Bulgaria and Romania among other places, which the airline said was for work, not leisure travel. 

Greek islands depend on ferry traffic but the most popular, such as Mykonos and Santorini, have airports and there is a system of regional airports around the county for domestic air traffic that’s also important.

Most international air traffic has stopped during worldwide lockdowns and Greece is hoping that tourists will return in numbers beginning in July to try to salvage what would be left of the summer season.

That depends in large part on health protocols on airliners that could limit the number of passengers and whether people will be willing yet to travel internationally while still recovering from the virus crisis that also nearly crashed economies and struck people in their wallets, limiting their disposable income.