Civil Aviation Minister Hossam Kamal met on Saturday with off-duty pilots of EgyptAir .

In a statement following the meeting, the minister stressed his confidence in the pilots' loyalty to the national carrier.

He lauded the efforts exerted by the pilots and staff of EgyptAir amid the hardships the company is going through.

As many as 224 EgyptAir pilots had submitted their resignations in protest at a financial charter, but they backed down in response to directives of President Abdel Fattah al Sisi.