NISAUDigest

Amid Covid-19 there has been exponential change in the set of rules that have been imposed at the airports.

We had a conversation with a student at the University of Greenwich, who made an international travel amidst the reformed rules. He boarded a flight operated by Air India on 29th June from Mumbai, India to London, United Kingdom. He was apprehensive of travelling, but to his relief, the airport authorities handled the situation efficiently. They ensured ample gloves and hand sanitisers for every passenger to maintain safety. He affirms the brilliant safety measures that are being taken at the Indian airports with the installation of multiple sanitisation bins and sprays at regular intervals. Every passenger had to go through medical thermal checks and scans at the airport to ensure they were fit to travel. However, he is visibly disappointed with the way the airline functioned, since there was no social distancing in the flight despite paying an enormous amount of money for the ticket. The food was already placed at the seat, and there was no dietary issue. After reaching the UK, he had to fill a quarantine form and go for the checkout procedure. According to his experience, apart from social distancing, there were no other safety measures in practice at the Heathrow airport. There were no thermal checks in place, and the luggage, the trollies and the passengers were not sanitised on arrival.

On the other hand, Mr Sai Sravan, another student from the University of Greenwich, boarded a flight operated by Air India on 13th July from Mumbai to London. He was immensely satisfied with the measures taken by the airlines. They provided a complete protective suit for the passenger in the middle seat to avoid transmission of virus. He also confirmed the commendable measures that were in place at the Mumbai airport. He appreciated the extensive use of web check-in service to avoid mass gatherings.