FAMILY and friends of Wiltshire people trapped in far away places abroad by cancelled flights are hoping a new rescue scheme launched by the Government will bring them home.

Among those waiting for news is Chris Davy the uncle of former Lavington School pupil Rachel Davy, 24, and her boyfriend Toby Baxter who are in Nepal.

On Monday evening Dominic Raab announced a £75 million rescue package for up to a million Britons stranded abroad.

The foreign secretary unveiled a programme of commercial flights and charter flights to repatriate those trapped in countries including Nepal.

Virgin, Easyjet, Jet2 and Titan Airways have signed a “memorandum of understanding” to work with the Government, while British Airways has also made it clear that it will help to get people home.

Rachel and Toby flew to Asia on March 8 to walk the Annapurna circuit but there trek was interrupted by news that they had just 24 hours to leave the country or face being stranded.

Mr Davy said: “Logistically, there was no way they could meet this deadline.They are now stranded in a hotel in Pokhara, Nepal, some 200 km from Kathmandu.

“They have been told that if they leave the hotel they will not be let back in. And looming in the near future is the likelihood of a mass breakout of the Corona virus in the area. Understandably, they are very frightened.

“Rachel is an intensive care nurse at Southmead Hospital. They could really do with having her back on the frontline as they treat virus suffering patients.”

One person who has managed to make it back to Wiltshire is Charlotte Spence after being stranded in Bali after Emirates Airlines cancelled flights last week.

But she managed to fly back at the weekend after help was organised by the British authorities and seats were booked on a commercial flight.