Coronavirus | States to clear operation of international flights

Source: The Hindu, 27/05/2020

Going by the SOP, passengers intending to undertake travel should
register with the respective foreign missions giving all details
prescribed by the Ministry of External Affairs. The cost of travel
would be borne by the travellers or their employers/hiring firms
or any other entity.
Asymptomatic only
Only asymptomatic passengers would be allowed to travel after they
sign an undertaking that after landing in India, they would
undergo COVID-l9 related protocols/guidelines issued by the
Government of India (Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Civil
Aviation, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and the Ministry of
External Affairs) and the State/UT Government concerned.
All passengers would be advised to download Aarogya Setu app on
their mobile devices. They would also have to sign an undertaking
in the format prescribed by the Ministry of Health & Family
Welfare furnishing information on their health status,
countries/places visited in the last 28 days, place of stay in
India and other contact details.
Other instructions on board were that the flight crew members
should wear masks while in the cockpit/crew rest area and change
their masks at regular intervals in case of long and ultra-long-
haul flights. There would be no sale of any item on board in order
to minimise interaction of the crew with passengers.
No entertainment
There would be no newspapers/magazines or other non-essential
loose items to be carried on board. In-flight entertainment would
be switched off to minimise touch on aircraft surfaces. Also,
there would be no or minimum catering (pre-packed cold
meals/snacks - depending on the duration of flight).
Emergency protocol
In case of an ill passenger or a passenger showing COVID-I9
symptoms such as fatigue cough, high fever etc., the passenger
would be isolated from the others and a dedicated crew in complete
protective gear be assigned to handle the case. A specific area of
the aircraft would have to be reserved as a quarantine area for
handling possible in-flight emergencies.
Asked if any request was received from any airline, a senior
official in the Tamil Nadu government said no such request was
received till late on Wednesday. Experts would be consulted before
taking a decision on allowing international flights, the official
said.
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