British paratroopers lead airdrop onto Tristan da Cunha for suspected hantavirus case
British paratroopers have dropped onto Britain’s most remote overseasterritory, Tristan da Cunha, along with medics and medical supplies, after a case of suspected hantavirus was confirmed there.
A team of six paratroopers and two military clinicians from 16 Air Assault Brigade jumped from an RAF A400M transport aircraft that flew 6,788km (4,218 miles) from RAF Brize Norton air base in Oxfordshire to Ascension Island then another 3,000 km due south to Tristan da Cunha.
Dropped alongside them on Saturday were oxygen supplies and other medical aid.
UK specialist paratroops parachute to deliver medical supplies (MoD)
The A400M was refuelled mid-flight by a supporting RAF Voyager. The operation is the first time the UK military has deployed medical personnel to provide humanitarian support via a parachute jump, the Ministry of Defence said in a statement.
The supplies were primarily destined `for a British man who UK health authorities say was a passenger on the cruise ship that was hit by a hantavirus outbreak and which docked at the island between 13 April and 15 April.
The WHO said the man reported symptoms compatible with hantavirus on 28 April and that he is stable and in isolation.
“With oxygen supplies on the island at a critical level, an airdrop with medical personnel was the only method of getting vital care to the patient in time,” the Ministry of Defence statement said.
Namita Singh11 May 2026 05:30
Last two evacuation flights from hantavirus-hit ship to depart Monday afternoon
The final two flights to evacuate passengers from the cruise ship hit by a deadly hantavirus outbreak docked near Tenerife will depart on Monday afternoon, Spain’s health minister said on Sunday evening, adding 94 passengers had been evacuated so far.
(AFP/Getty)
One flight from Australia will carry six passengers and another from the Netherlands will take 18 passengers, with both flights also taking passengers from other countries which did not send their own repatriation flights, officials have said.
Namita Singh11 May 2026 04:55
Australia to repatriate passengers from Hantavirus-hit cruise ship
The Australian government said on Monday it would repatriate its citizens from a Dutch-flagged luxury cruise ship hit by a deadly strain of hantavirus, with the passengers to be quarantined after they arrive in the country.
“We have agreed to repatriate a small number of Australians… and also one resident `of another country to Australia for medical treatment,” Environment Minister `Murray Watt told ABC News. He did not give the nationality of the extra person.
It was not known if any of the people being brought to Australia have fallen ill or were showing symptoms of the virus. The foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request seeking more details about the evacuation.
Passengers are evacuated by small boat from the MV Hondius in the Granadilla Port on 10 May 2026 in Tenerife, part of the Canary Islands, Spain (Getty)
Eight people no longer on the MV Hondius have fallen ill, according to a World Health Organisation tally from Friday, of which six are confirmed to have contracted the virus. Three have died, a Dutch couple and a German national.
Spain and France have evacuated their citizens from the MV Hondius, which has anchored near Tenerife, the largest of the Canary Islands, officials said, with flights to Canada, the Netherlands, Turkey, the UK, Ireland, and the United States slated to have left by Sunday night local time.
Namita Singh11 May 2026 04:03
French national develops Hantavirus symptoms
A French national aboard the cruise ship that saw an outbreak of hantavirus is has started developing symptoms of the disease.
His symptoms began to show as he was being repatriated to France on a chartered flight from Tenerife to Paris, said the country’s prime minister, Sebastiane Lecornu.
Passengers evacuated from the cruise ship MV Hondius, which was affected by a hantavirus outbreak, on the tarmac upon arrival at Le Bourget Airport, near Paris, France, 10 May 2026 (Reuters)
Therefore, all five French nationals who were on MV Hondius have been “immediately placed in strict isolation until further notice”, he announced.
Namita Singh11 May 2026 03:51
Watch: Drone footage captures Hantavirus-hit cruise ship passengers disembarking vesselDrone footage captures Hantavirus-hit cruise ship passengers disembarking vessel
Daniel Haygarth11 May 2026 03:00
Updates from UKHSA and public health minister
During the isolation period, passengers will have daily contact with UKHSA health protection teams to check their wellbeing and ensure they are supported to isolate safely.
Professor Robin May, chief scientific officer at the agency, said: “We are pleased to confirm that all British nationals onboard the MV Hondius have now safely returned to the UK and are being supported by UKHSA and NHS medical experts at Arrowe Park, who have worked at pace to prepare for the safe arrival of passengers at the facility.
“Staff at Arrowe Park have once again demonstrated their commitment and professionalism in responding rapidly to a health emergency, and we are very grateful.
“The risk remains very low for members of the general public.”
Public health minister Sharon Hodgson said: “None of the passengers are symptomatic but we will monitor them closely over the next 72 hours at the hospital, as part of a precautionary isolation period.
“With no cases or symptoms among them and both our stringent monitoring and isolation measures, the risk to the public remains extremely low.”
Dan Haygarth11 May 2026 02:00
Cooper thanks those who brought Britons home
In a post on X, Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said: “Thank you to all those who worked around the clock to get passengers from MV Hondius back to the UK by special flight this evening with public health protections in place.
“The UK has worked with Spain, South Africa, the Netherlands and the WHO to coordinate safe returns.”
Dan Haygarth11 May 2026 01:00
German national and Japanese passenger also to be monitored at Arrowe Park
The 20 British passengers, who were tested for hantavirus before getting on the flight, were taken to isolate at the UK’s initial Covid quarantine site at Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral, Merseyside.
One German national, who is a UK resident, and one Japanese passenger from the MV Hondius are also being monitored at Arrowe Park.
The UK Government took the Japanese passenger at the request of the Tokyo government and they will complete their isolation in the UK in line with UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) guidance.
Dan Haygarth10 May 2026 23:58
Passengers arrive at Arrowe Park
The bus carrying the British passengers and crew being repatriated from the MV Hondius makes its way to Arrowe Park Hospital (Getty)
Dan Haygarth10 May 2026 23:30
Passengers from hantavirus-hit cruise ship arrive at UK isolation facility
British passengers evacuated from a cruise ship hit by a hantavirus outbreak have arrived at an isolation facility after being repatriated from Tenerife.
A chartered Titan Airways flight transported the passengers from the Canary Islands to Manchester Airport on Sunday evening.
The 20 British passengers, who were tested for hantavirus before getting on the flight, were taken to isolate at the UK’s initial Covid quarantine site at Arrowe Park Hospital on the Wirral, Merseyside.
Emergency services in the North West said they expected the passengers to be housed and provided with clothes at the “managed setting” for up to 72 hours.
The Arrowe Park facility has six storeys of self-contained flats with their own bedrooms, en-suite bathrooms, kitchen and lounge facilities.
Dan Haygarth10 May 2026 23:11