The first flights scheduled to rescue UK holidaymakers from Rhodes in Greece due to raging wildfires will depart today (July 24).

It comes after extreme heat with temperatures reaching over 40 degrees caused the fires, with authorities also beginning to evacuate tourists from large swathes of the island of Corfu on Sunday (July 23) after fires also began to spread.

Airline easyJet will operate two rescue flights from Rhodes totalling 421 seats on Monday and a third on Tuesday (July 25), in addition to its nine scheduled flights to the Greek island.

UK flights to Rhodes in Greece cancelled by multiple airline companies

Tour operators Jet2, TUI and Correndon have all cancelled flights which were due to be leaving the popular holiday spot over the next few days, reports Sky News.

“Travel agent Thomas Cook has cancelled some upcoming holidays and is offering other customers full refunds should they wish to cancel their trips,” it adds.

Meanwhile, a British Foreign Office spokesman confirmed a Rapid Deployment Team had arrived on Rhodes to support travel operators in bringing Britons home.

Some flights out of Rhodes were delayed on Sunday night, including an easyJet flight due to arrive in Gatwick at 9pm which touched down at 11.30pm after stopping for a crew change in Milan.

A later easyJet flight landed at Gatwick at 2.23am, an hour and a half after it was due, while there were further delays amid the overnight flights from Jet2 and Tui to Nottingham, Birmingham, Stansted, Manchester and Newcastle.

Further easyJet, Jet2 and Ryanair flights from Rhodes were scheduled to arrive at Gatwick, Stansted and Bristol on Monday afternoon.

Foreign Office issues safety guidance for UK holidaymakers in Rhodes

In an update on Sunday, a spokeswoman for the Foreign Office said: “We are actively monitoring the fires in Rhodes and are in close contact with local authorities.

“The FCDO has deployed a Rapid Deployment Team (RDT) of five FCDO staff and four British Red Cross responders to Rhodes to support British nationals whose safety is our top priority. They will be based at Rhodes International Airport to assist with travel documents and liaise with Greek authorities and travel operators on the ground.

“British nationals in Rhodes should contact their travel operator in the first instance for any queries regarding the rescheduling of flights and continue to check our updated gov.uk travel advice for information.”

The latest advice on the Foreign Office website said people in Rhodes could contact the Greek government’s own crisis management unit.