A total of 442 Filipinos, including more than 200 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), safely returned to the Philippines from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Saturday, March 14 aboard a government-chartered flight, the first of its kind amid escalating tensions in the Middle East.

The first government-chartered flight, B747-400 facilitated by the Philippine government, touched down at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 past noon, carrying OFWs, dependents, and stranded tourists from Fujairah, UAE.

Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) Secretary Hans Leo J. Cacdac accompanied the repatriates and shared a video of himself with them in the background aboard the flight that landed at the NAIA.

“We have landed. 442 Filipinos from the UAE on the PHL government-chartered B747-400 flight, as directed by President Bongbong Marcos, are home,” Cacdac said in a Facebook post.

He assured the public that additional government-assisted flights would be arranged for Filipinos who wish to return home.

The returning Filipinos were welcomed by officials from the DMW, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), and other government agencies at NAIA.

A second chartered flight from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, is expected to arrive on Sunday.

The repatriation comes amid ongoing regional tensions. UAE defense systems continue to intercept Iranian missiles, following Tehran’s retaliatory strikes two weeks after a U.S. and Israel-led military operation targeted Iranian nuclear sites and killed the country’s supreme leader.