New COVID-Safe health guidelines provide added confidence to aviation
Airlines and airports have welcomed as a major confidence boost, the confirmation of new Australian Government health guidelines for domestic flying, announced today by the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Health.
The Australian Airports Association (AAA) and Airlines for Australia & New Zealand (A4ANZ) say the industry-developed Domestic Passenger Journey Protocol, will provide consistent advice for COVID-Safe travel as borders reopen.
"The managed resumption of some domestic travel has already commenced safely, and this protocol will help build consumer confidence to resume flying again in greater numbers," AAA Chief Executive James Goodwin said.
"The protocol has been guided by a set of shared principles, with the health and safety of our passengers and staff paramount. It adopts an evidence-based, layered approach to risk reduction at each stage of the journey," A4ANZ CEO Dr Alison Roberts said.
As part of the Australian Aviation Recovery Coalition, airlines and airports have worked collaboratively with Australian Government representatives to develop nationally consistent policies and a protocol that will enable people to travel with confidence.
Mr Goodwin said, "These measures will be critical, not only for rebuilding traveller confidence, but with as aviation plays a key role in driving Australia's economic recovery from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic."
Dr Roberts said, "While there are still restrictions in place on domestic travel, we wanted to ensure that as an industry we were ready to get more people safely back in the air again, as soon the restrictions begin to ease."
These new health guidelines also highlight that passengers must also do their part, including:
•Not flying if feeling unwell;
•Downloading the COVID-Safe app;
•Providing contact details;
•Checking in online and using digital boarding passes;
•Adopting hygiene measures such as frequent handwashing.