Single-aisle aircraft operations are set to resume at Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport (SAAS), commonly known as Subang Airport, with an anticipated start date as early as June this year. This marks a significant development after a hiatus of 26 years since all narrow-body aircraft operations were relocated to Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) in 1998.

The expansion works at the terminal, part of the Subang Airport Regeneration Plan (SARP) phase one announced by Transport Minister Anthony Loke in February 2023, include the construction of up to five parking bays for narrow-body airplanes and six parking bays for ATRs. Work on the apron side of the terminal has already commenced, with discussions ongoing for additional parking bays.

Upon completion of phase one, the terminal will be capable of handling single-aisle aircraft such as Boeing 737s, Airbus A320s, and A321s, with an expected increase in annual passenger capacity to three million from the current 1.5 million. The airport, previously catering mainly to turboprop and business jet operations, is now poised for a resurgence in jet operations.

Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) is collaborating with the Civil Aviation Authority of Malaysia (CAAM) to allocate airport slots to interested airlines. Existing carriers like Firefly and Batik Air Malaysia Sdn Bhd can retain their slots and transition to jet operations. The slots policy is expected to be finalised by April, with Malaysian-based carriers given priority on a first-come-first-served basis.

The upcoming revitalisation of Subang Airport, however, is not seen as a threat to KLIA’s passenger traffic. With a maximum capacity of eight million passengers annually, which it’s still a very long way from achieving, Subang Airport will focus on point-to-point travel, without transfer facilities to KLIA. Plans for phase two and phase three of the SARP are underway, with discussions ongoing with the Transport Ministry for approval.

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The Malaysian Aviation Commission (MAVCOM) has announced adjustments to the passenger service charge (PSC) for international flights departing from Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) and klia2 to ASEAN countries. The new charges will take effect on June 1, 2024.

Currently, the two airport terminals in KL each levy one of three PSCs based on the flight in question: domestic, ASEAN, or ‘beyond ASEAN.’ At both KLIA and klia2, those PSCs are now RM11, RM35, and RM73, respectively. (You may recall a bit of a public row a few years ago, as airlines argued it was unfair to charge the same PSC at both KLIA and klia2 when the facilities and services were vastly different.)

Since then, the terminals have been “rebranded” to KLIA Terminal 1 and Terminal 2, though passengers would likely argue that little else has actually changed, beyond KLIA’s Aerotrain breaking down in March 2023, stranding over 110 passengers, and being taken out of service until it is replaced – supposedly by 2025.

NEW PASSENGER SERVICE CHARGES

As of June 1, for all international travel, the ASEAN and beyond ASEAN PSC have been unified into a single international departure PSC of RM73 for KL International Airport (KLIA) Terminal 1, and RM50 for KLIA Terminal 2 and other airports.

Notable, however, is that PSCs for flights after June 1 will still be charged at the old rates if the ticket is purchased and issued before June 1. This is advantageous to passengers in some cases, but disadvantageous in others, so be aware.

The increase for ASEAN flights represents a 110% hike for KLIA and a 45% jump for klia2. The PSC for flights beyond ASEAN will be unchanged at KLIA and will decrease by about 32% at klia2.

MAVCOM is also introducing a transfer PSC across all airports. The rate for domestic travel through all airports is RM7, while the rates are RM42 for international travel through KLIA Terminal 1 and RM29 for international travel through KLIA Terminal 2 and other airports.

According to MAVCOM, these adjustments reflect their efforts to align PSC rates with the evolving needs of the aviation industry and to ensure fair pricing for passengers utilizing Malaysian airports for transit.

Amid these changes, MAVCOM has maintained the domestic departure PSC at RM11 for all airports, except for Senai International Airport.

The new tariffs will remain at these levels until December 31, 2026. For more information on the PSC and other charges, visit www.mavcom.my.

The post Your Regional Flights from KL Are About to Get More Expensive appeared first on ExpatGo.

The air corridor between Singapore and Kuala Lumpur stands as a vital link between these two bustling Southeast Asian hubs. Over the course of 2023, it witnessed a whopping 25,000 flights, offering nearly 4.9 million seats to travellers. September 2023 saw this city pair rise to the top of the heap to become the world’s busiest international route, just ahead of Cairo-Jeddah and Hong Kong-Taipei. But why is that?

Before the pandemic struck, back in 2019, this route ranked as the second-busiest international airway globally. With a capacity exceeding 5.5 million seats, the route saw a rather astounding 82 daily flights. While flight frequencies have fluctuated due to global travel market dynamics, demand has remained consistently robust. This has kept the airways well-served by both low-cost and full-service carriers, usually offering numerous daily flights.

HERE’S WHY IT’S SUCH A BUSY ROUTE

The three main drivers of the KL-Singapore air route are bilateral tourism, friends and family, and economic activity.

Tourism serves as a significant driver of traffic between Singapore and Malaysia. In 2022, as pandemic border restrictions were eased, holidaymakers constituted a significant 39% of Malaysian travellers to Singapore, making it the primary travel purpose that year. (That number may suffer going forward, however, with the ringgit performing so poorly against the Singapore dollar in recent months.)

Conversely, residents from the island nation frequently venture across the border to Malaysia for its affordable gastronomic delights and shopping havens. Iconic attractions like Universal Studios Singapore, Sentosa Island, and Jewel Changi Airport draw Malaysians southward. (Yes, the airport itself is a popular tourist destination… it’s that good!)

Family ties also play a big role. The bonds shared between families (and friends) in the two countries fuels another substantial portion of travel. This isn’t a surprise: Given Singapore’s historical connection to Malaysia, families and close friendships often span both nations, prompting frequent back-and-forth visits among relatives. And for Malaysians, Singapore is a far more affordable option when they can stay with family or friends rather than in a pricey hotel!

Economic activity further underpins travel between Singapore and Malaysia. With a legacy of economic and cultural ties dating back to the 1960s, professionals frequently commute between the two nations for employment opportunities. High-level executives often traverse this route for meetings, conferences, and other business engagements.

SHORT BY DISTANCE, LONG BY IMPORTANCE

Leading airlines competing on this corridor include flag carriers Singapore Airlines and Malaysia Airlines, alongside low-cost carriers like AirAsia, Scoot, Jetstar, and Firefly. The resurgence of flight frequencies post-pandemic is poised to exceed pre-pandemic levels this year as more airlines reclaim their capacities.

The Singapore-Kuala Lumpur route, despite its wee distance, actually ranks as the world’s shortest among the busiest airways, covering a mere 296 km (or 184 miles). Surprisingly, some carriers still deploy widebody aircraft for this brief flight, owing to sheer demand. Singapore Airlines opts for the A350, while Malaysia Airlines operates the Airbus A330, and Ethiopian Airlines flies the Boeing 787 Dreamliner.

And it’s not just KLIA to Changi and back! Connecting their secondary airports, Firefly links Singapore’s Seletar Airport to Kuala Lumpur’s Subang Airport with scheduled ATR turboprop service. (Subang Airport, known officially as Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport, once served as Kuala Lumpur’s primary airport from 1965 to 1998.)

LAND-BASED ALTERNATIVES

While air travel is regarded as the faster option, Singapore and Malaysia are also linked by road and rail. The five- to six-hour journey between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore sees frequent bus services, and while that may seem longer than a so-called one-hour flight, savvy travellers who regularly ply the route know that the actual door-to-door time is usually not all that different whether you take a flight or take a bus. Long treks to the airport, check-in and security screening hassles, crowded planes and chaotic boarding processes, immigration woes, and the potential for flight delays easily make that “one-hour flight” more of a four- to five-hour journey when counting from door to door.

Of course, even though you can turn up at a bus terminal 15 minutes before departure and have no problem – and no security screening process – there’s always the chance of traffic jams on the highway or delays at the border. For many, flying just seems faster, even though that isn’t always the case!

Additionally, two bridges – the Causeway and the Second Link – each connect Malaysia’s southernmost tip to Singapore, so some people do choose to self-drive. However, air travel remains the preferred choice due to its speed and affordability, perennially cementing the air corridor’s status as one of the world’s busiest… and for now, the number one placeholder.

The post It’s the World’s Busiest International Air Route… Here’s Why appeared first on ExpatGo.

Not to be confused with Malaysia’s City-Link courier and logistics services company, Citilink is an award-winning four-star Indonesian low-cost airline and a subsidiary of Garuda Indonesia, the flag carrier of Indonesia. The airline was founded in 2001 and started flight operations in 2002. Its headquarters is located in Jakarta, and its main hub is Juanda International Airport in Surabaya.

Citilink operates a fleet of Airbus A320 and A320neo aircraft, and the airline offers domestic and international flights to various destinations in Asia and the Middle East, including China, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates.

Check out these special fares on sale this month for travel through the end of June 2023:

Visit their website HERE to learn more about the airline and its destinations, or call/message their ticketing team at any of the numbers above to take advantage of these special fares.

The post Get to Know Citilink with Great Airfares in April appeared first on ExpatGo.

Penang International Airport is officially prepared to welcome in flights under the Penang-Singapore Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) scheme from March 16, 2022. The airport had gone through the necessary inspections and spatial planning by Malaysia Airports Sdn Bhd to ensure smooth facilitation of all incoming flights from Singapore.

“The spatial planning includes designating a dedicated aerobridge and airport apron for passengers to disembark,” said Penang Tourism and Creative Economy Committee chairman Yeoh Soon Hin.

“PIA has also established a medical lab for Covid-19 swab test purposes,” he said after visiting PIA to inspect the final stages and progress of its VTL preparations.

The Malaysia Aviation Group (MAG) had submitted an application to allow for the Penang-Singapore VTL in December last year, hoping for consideration from the federal government as it would greatly benefit the country’s manufacturing landscape.

“The Penang government remains committed to curbing the Covid-19 virus spread to ensure that the Penang-Singapore VTL scheme can yield economic recovery for the state,” Yeoh added.

According to Yeoh, passengers who test negative upon arrival will be allowed to enter Penang while those who test positive will be sent to a special isolation area for further measures.

NEW MULTI-STOREY CARPARK

Penang International Airport looks about ready for a surge of new arrivals and departures with the opening of a new multi-storey carpark that is 99% complete. The new carpark represents more than a tripling in parking capacity over the old one, sure to be a welcome addition to PIA.

The carpark holds 2,200 bays and is expected to be opened to the public this month. Costing RM70 million, the airport’s new carpark is built over the previous one, which had only about 650 parking bays.

The post Penang International Airport Ready to Open for VTL Travellers appeared first on ExpatGo.

Despite two years of mass flight cancellations, widespread international border closures, unprecedented financial struggles, and plenty of uncertainty, commercial aviation remains a bastion of safety.

Much like 2020 was, 2021 proved to be another incredibly difficult year for airlines as the plunge in air travel continued due to the impact of the ongoing pandemic. Even now, two years after Covid-19 first began making global headlines, there are still far fewer flights and passengers taking to the skies.

The pandemic has also led to some significant changes in the annual list of the world’s safest airlines from AirlineRatings.com, an airline safety and product review website.

Encouragingly for passengers, no one region dominates in the top 20 safest airlines, suggesting that the industry as a whole — at least the big players — still put safety at the forefront. For most airlines, safety has taken on an even broader meaning, applying not only to aircraft operations but to passenger and crew health and hygiene, too.

For 2022, out of some 385 carriers worldwide which were evaluated for their crash and serious incident records and the average age of their aircraft, as well as Covid-19 protocols and operational innovations, Air New Zealand came out on top in the world’s safest airlines list.

The flag carrier airline for New Zealand was awarded first place “due to its excellent incident record, number of cockpit innovations, pilot training and very low fleet age,” according to Geoffrey Thomas, editor-in-chief of the Australian-based AirlineRatings.com website.

Etihad Airways took second place, while Qatar Airways came in third, with Singapore Airlines and TAP Portugal achieving fourth and fifth place, respectively.

“The last two years have been extremely difficult for airlines with Covid-19 slashing travel and AirlineRatings editors have particularly focused on the lengths airlines are undertaking to retrain pilots ahead of a return to service,” explained Thomas. “Air New Zealand is a leader in this field with comprehensive retraining.”

The airline also received praise for being a world leader in operational safety advancements over the past four decades. Its various initiatives include recently becoming one of the first airlines in the world to trial the use of Assaia Apron AI technology to improve its aircraft turnaround times.

“Air New Zealand has excelled across the broad safety spectrum, never losing sight of the smallest detail while caring for its flight crews who have worked under significant stress,” Thomas explained in an interview with CNN Travel.

Without further ado, here are the world’s 20 safest airlines, as ranked by AirlineRatings.com:

1. Air New Zealand
2. Etihad Airways
3. Qatar Airways
4. Singapore Airlines
5. TAP Air Portugal
6. SAS
7. Qantas
8. Alaska Airlines
9. EVA Air
10. Virgin Australia/Virgin Atlantic
11. Cathay Pacific Airways
12. Hawaiian Airlines
13. American Airlines
14. Lufthansa
15. Finnair
16. KLM
17. British Airways
18. Delta Air Lines
19. United Airlines
20. Emirates

The website also separately named the world’s safest budget/low-cost carriers, and Malaysia-based AirAsia failed to make the cut, for reasons unknown. The top 10 list of safest low-cost airlines follows, with the difference from the overall list being that the budget airlines are listed alphabetically, rather than in ranked order, and considered equally safe:

1. Allegiant Air
2. easyJet
3. Frontier Airlines
4. Jetstar Group
5. Jetblue
6. Ryanair
7. Vietjet Air
8. Volaris
9. Westjet
10. Wizz Air

The post World’s Safest Airlines for 2022 Named appeared first on ExpatGo.

The two decades following the end of World War II were truly incredible in the world of aerospace, particularly the 1960s. We saw everything from Chuck Yeager breaking the sound barrier in 1947 to the production of the amazing SR-71 Blackbird (still the world record-holding fastest airplane) to the first flight of the game-changing Boeing 747 all the way to manned spaceflight and the first moon landing.

The seminal decade of the ’60s also brought commercial supersonic travel to the world with the truly stunning Concorde airliner, a joint British-French aircraft that first flew in 1969, an inspiring year that also saw the first flight of the 747 jumbo jet and of course man’s first steps on the moon.

Since that era, however, commercial aviation has largely stalled in terms of serious innovation or major breakthroughs. Changes have been incremental, driven primarily by economics rather than imagination. In fact, since Concorde took to the skies half a century ago, about the most exciting thing we’ve seen in the world of commercial aircraft has been the introduction of winglets.

The incredible world of supersonic passenger flights ended nearly 20 years ago, as October 24, 2003 marked the end of an era. On that day, the legendary Concorde made its final commercial flight, flying from London’s Heathrow to New York City’s John F. Kennedy airport. Since that time, no commercial supersonic airliners have operated – the regulatory, technological, and financial problems have simply proven too much to overcome. The dream of a three-hour flight between London and New York, a dream that was a reality with Concorde, suddenly seemed firmly consigned to the past.

Now, however, that dream is being revived, and if one US company called Aerion has its way, it’s not London to New York that will be covered in three hours… but Tokyo to Los Angeles! That can only be accomplished by flying seriously fast.

The Aerion AS3 is a Mach 4+ commercial airliner which its manufacturers say will be able to carry 50 passengers over a range of 7,000 nautical miles (that’s 8,055 statute miles, or just under 13,000 km). It’s also planned to do so with a relatively benign carbon footprint.

“Our vision is to build a future where humanity can travel between any two points on our planet within three hours. Supersonic flight is the starting point, but it is just that – the beginning,” said Florida-based Aerion’s chairman, president, and CEO, Tom Vice, in a recently released statement. “We must push the boundaries of what is possible.”

Earlier in 2021, Aerion expanded and strengthened its partnership with NASA’s Langley Research Center, with a specific focus on commercial flight in the Mach 3 to Mach 5 range.

Mach numbers reflect the speed of sound at a given altitude (the absolute speed varies at different altitudes due to changing air density). So to put that in more familiar terms, we’re talking 2,300 to 3,800 miles per hour, or 3,700 to 6,200 kph – that’s up to seven times faster than a regular long-haul passenger airliner, most of which cruise at about Mach 0.8 or so. (Sound waves travel faster through higher-density mediums. At sea level, Mach 1 is about 760 mph, but at 35,000 ft, where most airliners cruise, it’s 660 mph, as the air is less dense.)

In our Asia to America scenario, the flight distance from Tokyo to L.A. is 5,440 miles, or about 8,755 km. Currently, the flight between these two cities takes about 9 hours 30 minutes. A passenger plane cruising at Mach 4 for a good chunk of the overall flight would cut that time to less than three hours.

What would that mean for those of us in Southeast Asia? Unfortunately, until ultra-long-haul supersonic airliners become a thing, we’d still need to make a connection. Flying to Los Angeles, for example, the distance from Singapore is far greater than from Tokyo. At a distance of 8,762 miles (14,101 km), it’s simply beyond the range of many currently operating commercial jets, let alone ones on the drawing board now.

But, if and when that day comes, the nonstop 17-hour-plus flight from the Lion City to L.A., a route now operated solely by Singapore Airlines, could be slashed to less than six hours.

For the relative near-term, though, we’d likely still need to board our trans-Pacific flight from points much further north in Asia to take advantage of the new era of supersonic flight.

Aerion has already made waves in the industry with its forthcoming AS2 aircraft, a small business-oriented passenger jet which promises to fly from New York to London in 4.5 hours. If all goes to plan, the AS2 will become the first supersonic passenger aircraft to enter commercial service in more than 50 years. The 8- to 12-passenger business jet will travel at Mach 1.4 (more than 1,000 mph and nearly double the speed of most commercial jets), with production expected to begin in 2023. The AS2’s first flight is scheduled for 2024, and Aerion intends to take the plane to market in 2026.

In fact, Aerion is currently building their massive new global headquarters in Florida, right next to Orlando Melbourne International Airport, in order to facilitate ongoing work on its upcoming projects.

The AS3, which would succeed the AS2, would be larger and much faster. Connecting any two points on the planet within three hours seems wildly optimistic (and frankly unreasonable) at this time, but who knows? In the early 1960s, surely no one imagined a plane that could fly at searing speeds of Mach 3.2 at an altitude of 85,000 ft, but by the mid-1970s, the SR-71 was doing just that.

Aerion’s biggest, buzziest competitor at this stage seems to be Denver, Colorado-based Boom, a curious name indeed for a company focused on supersonic aircraft, whose commercial use was doomed in part by that very thing — the sonic boom.

Nevertheless, in October 2020, Boom made history by rolling out its XB1 demonstrator aircraft, the world’s first independently developed supersonic plane. Dubbed Baby Boom, the 71 ft-long plane is a 1:3 scale prototype of Boom’s upcoming supersonic commercial jet. Called Overture, the passenger jet is expected to have a maximum speed of Mach 2.2, slightly faster than Concorde’s top speed of Mach 2.04, making it capable of flying from London to New York in just three hours and 30 minutes.

Boom has also picked up some impressive cred along the way, including millions in funding from Japan Airlines and a contract from the US Air Force to make a future supersonic Air Force One a distinct possibility.

WHY IS GOING SUPERSONIC A BIG THING?

Humans have always been obsessed with speed, but flying faster than the speed of sound was a uniquely challenging goal, one which eluded mankind from the earliest days of powered flight until Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier in 1947. That’s actually a fairly short span of time for that kind of advancement, considering the pioneering Wright Brothers only got their plane off the ground at all in 1903. But what is the ‘sound barrier’ and why was breaking it a big deal?

When a non-moving object, such as a speaker, produces sound, its sound waves spread out in all directions. If these waves were visible to the naked eye, they would look similar to the waves that occur when you toss a stone into a pond, with little waves spreading out in concentric circles.

When an aircraft goes supersonic, however, it begins to compress the air it’s flying through and actually moves ahead of the sound waves it produces. This phenomenon leads to concentrated sound waves trailing behind the aircraft in a cone-like shape. It’s actually an impressive event, even visually, when an aircraft breaks the speed of sound.

But audibly, it’s an entirely different story. An approaching supersonic aircraft is silent (since it’s literally travelling faster than the sound it’s producing), but when it flies over an observer, they will get hit by a sudden, loud, boom-like sound: the plane’s concentrated sound waves. This is the sonic boom. In some cases, these sonic shock waves can cause damage to buildings or other structures. Supersonic military jets flying over land have even been known to break windows.

The sonic boom quickly led to Concorde being banned from flying over land, which of course severely limited its flight options to routes including cities like London, Washington D.C., New York, and Paris, among others. Only once the aircraft was over the ocean was it permitted to exceed the speed of sound.

But as our understanding of sonic booms and supersonic flight has grown, so too has our technological know-how. These days, aerospace engineers are working on subtly reshaping crucial parts of the aircraft to yield a ‘low-boom’ supersonic plane. There would still be a sonic boom — that part is unavoidable — but these changes would make the boom only a minor phenomenon, akin to distant fireworks or thunder, not the alarming and occasionally damaging sonic booms of the past.

It indeed seems that a new era of supersonic flight is on the cusp of arrival, and within another handful of years, we could well see some truly incredible speeds realised by commercial flights, finally perhaps even breaking the long-held official top speed of Mach 3.2, a blistering 2,193.2 mph (3,539.6 kph), set by the inimitable SR-71 Blackbird back in 1976.

For now, of course, most of us would be happy to just get those international borders open and take our seats onboard even a traditional, boring subsonic aircraft!

Check out the Aerion AS3 launch video below!

The post Want to Fly from Asia to the US in Under Three Hours? appeared first on ExpatGo.

In an effort to mitigate the ongoing spread of the coronavirus, Thailand’s aviation authority has banned all in-flight reading materials, food, and beverages on its domestic flights. The rule went into effect on December 31.

The only exceptions are the aircraft safety information card and water on request, such as needed for taking medications.

Airlines which do not comply and enforce the rule will face penalties from CAAT, the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand.

CAAT’s Director General, Chula Sukmanop, confirmed the ban in an interview with CNN, saying, “Cleaning time after each stop of domestic flight is extremely short, since operators tend to do the quickest turnaround as possible and I think it is unlikely operators would be able to thoroughly clean all of these items. Therefore, having non-essential reading materials on-board would create more risk of virus exposure.”

On some level, this seems a sensible measure to reduce potential points of contact, as it stands to reason that most airlines are probably not sanitising and disinfecting in-flight magazines, newspapers, and menus between flights. Passengers are permitted to bring their own reading material onboard with them, though they would need to take it along with them when they deplane at their destination.

As for food and drinks, not only are they banned from being provided onboard, all consumption is prohibited even if passengers bring the items with them. Since masks must be worn at all times, disallowing eating and drinking also seems to be a logical result of this policy. This is actually not a new ruling, as food and beverages had previously been prohibited on domestic flights from April 26 to August 31, 2020. Though the ban had expired, it has now been revived and expanded to include reading materials, as well.

According to figures provided by CAAT, Thailand’s domestic air travel is currently running at around 40% of capacity.

So far, airline-specific policies such as this have not been implemented in Malaysia, with airlines largely left to handle their own execution of broader government-mandated or government-suggested SOPs.

The post This ASEAN Country Has Banned All Food and Magazines on Its Flights appeared first on ExpatGo.

As travel remains only partially available to many of us at this time, the idea of flying may not be something you’ve thought much about. But for people who currently take domestic flights or perhaps need to fly for business, wondering about the risks of exposure to the coronavirus while flying is a pretty normal thing.

We’ve been assured that the risk of transmission is low, largely because of the super-duper HEPA filters on modern aircraft, which filter out 99.97% of all particulate matter, including viruses, along with the fact that the air in the aircraft cabin is not just recirculated but rather completely refreshed and exchanged every two to three minutes.

Now, however, scientists and data analysts have actually quantified the odds of coronavirus transmission while onboard a flight. And they’re better than you may think.

According to Arnold Barnett, professor of statistics at the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology, studies were carried out to determine the odds of being infected with the virus during a relatively short flight (which is all most of us are able to take now).

For the typical single-aisle short-haul plane configured in a 3-3 layout (i.e., three seats on either side of the aisle), specifically the Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 families of aircraft, the risk of contracting Covid-19 while onboard is just 1 in 4,300 – and that’s if the flight is full. That may seem an unacceptably high risk, but think about it: those odds suggest that you would only become infected on ONE out of every 4,300 flights. It’s safe to say the average traveller doesn’t take that many flights in an entire lifetime. If the middle seats are kept empty, the risk falls even further, with the odds improving to just 1 in 7,700.

Barnett concedes that even though the risk is low, the hard numbers may still not offer up as much relief as some had hoped. “Most things are more dangerous now than they were before Covid, and aviation is no exception to that,” he explained in an interview with CNN Travel.

“But three things have to go wrong for you to get infected (on a flight). There has to be a Covid-19 patient on board and they have to be contagious,” he noted. “If there is such a person on your flight, assuming they are wearing a mask, it has to fail to prevent the transmission. They also have to be close enough that there’s a danger you could suffer from the transmission.”

Barnett factored all of this into the equation when doing his statistical analysis.

And as for the odds of actually contracting Covid-19 on a flight and then dying from it? That would be an incredibly rare and unlucky occurrence: The odds of that are less than 1 in 500,000… definitely “in your favour”!

The post Wondering About the Odds of Catching Covid-19 on a Plane? Experts Now Know the Numbers. appeared first on ExpatGo.

ExpatGo has long maintained solid relationships with carrier companies across the globe, and in doing so, has been a go-to for customers to learn of flight ticket promotions and new routes being launched first hand.

We sit down with representatives from Cathay Pacific, Emirates, KLM/Air France, Turkish Airlines and AirAsia to learn about the various necessary precautions each carrier is taking in an effort to transport customers safely within their aircrafts.

1. What precautions are your ground staff and cabin crew taking in order to facilitate passenger safety?

Cathay Pacific:
Pre-flight health declaration:
We require all passengers to answer health screening questions upon check-in at worldwide airports including Hong Kong.

Face coverings requirement:
Passengers are also required to wear face coverings in situations where they cannot maintain a physical distance of 2 metres from others. These areas would include during check-in, in our lounges, during boarding, in the aircraft cabin and during disembarkation. We also recommend that passengers keep the face coverings on, in high-traffic areas such as security lanes and baggage collection areas.

Thorough cabin disinfection and deep cleaning:
We adopt the highest standard in cleaning and disinfecting our cabins, seats, galleys and washrooms. This includes strict disinfection of surfaces and fixtures such as personal television screens, meal tables, baby bassinet tables, and armrests across the aircraft after every flight. Our staff are trained with the latest hygiene protocols and cleaning procedures, using products recommended by IATA and WHO.
Upon the confirmation of a case of coronavirus after a flight we will also engage professionals to disinfect the entire aircraft.
We have consistently ranked in the top 10 of Skytrax’s ‘World Best Airline Cabin Cleanliness’ list for five consecutive years, so that says a lot about our commitment to cabin cleanliness.

HEPA Air Filters:
Our aircraft are fitted with HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Arresters) aircraft filtration systems that filter 99.999% of dust particles and airborne contaminants such as viruses and bacteria, to ensure the highest possible quality of cabin air. HEPA filters offer a similar level of performance to those used to keep the air clean in hospital operating rooms and industrial clean rooms.
Other measures include the provision of hand sanitisers, adherence to the high food safety standards for our onboard catering, increased cleaning frequency and modified food offering for our lounges.

Cabin Crew:
Our cabin crew are provided with masks, they can also put on goggles throughout the flight. The inflight service has also been modified to reflect the current situation. In First and Business class, meals will be served on a single tray, while trolley services have been suspended.
In Premium Economy and Economy class, we’ve switched to providing a snack bag and hot snack service on short haul routes. Standard meals are still provided on long haul routes.

For a full list of measures in greater detail please visit https://www.cathaypacific.com/cx/en_MY/travel-information/travel-preparation/traveladvisories/novel-coronavirus-information-centre/precautionary-measures

Emirates:
Emirates has introduced measures to ensure the safety and hygiene of their employees and customers at each stage of the travel journey both on board and on the ground. All ground staff and cabin are dressed in personal protective equipment (PPE). The boarding sequence has been staggered and passengers board by row from the last low to the first in small numbers. Passengers are provided with complimentary hygiene kits consisting of masks, gloves, antibacterial wipes and hand sanitizer.

KLM/Air France:
For airlines, flying during the corona crisis means that they have to operate under exceptional circumstances. The current situation calls for a series of measures to carry out operations as safely as possible for passengers and crew.
·         Air France and KLM now requires all customers and crew to wear a face mask / face protection during their KLM flight.
·         Air France and KLM crew will wear facial protection and gloves
·         At the airport ; Air France and KLM services desks have protective screens
·         Physical spacing at Paris-Charles de Gaulle and Amsterdam Schiphol airport
·         Lounge seating / entry has been adapted
·         Passenger health check depending on the destination
·         Thorough cleaning of aircraft with approved disinfectants
·         Where possible maximum distance between passenger
·          Air onboard is continuously refreshed

For more information, visit: https://corporate.airfrance.com/en/news/air-france-our-commitment-health-and-safety-ensure-you-safe-trip

AirAsia:
AirAsia Group Chief Operations Officer Javed Malik said: “In addition to the existing strict safety measures on-ground, such as social distancing markers and Allstars wearing personal protective equipment, we are pleased to introduce our updated contactless procedures to deliver a more secure, safe, efficient, and contactless experience for our guests across the region. The safety of our guests and Allstars is our utmost priority and these additional enhancements demonstrate our continued commitment to keeping flying safe in the new normal environment for air travel.”

For more information, visit:
https://newsroom.airasia.com/news/airasia-implements-end-to-end-contactless-procedures-for-essential-travel and
https://newsroom.airasia.com/news/2020/4/29/flying-safe-with-airasia

Turkish Airlines:
Star Alliance member Turkish Airlines have prepared an info-video, concisely covering all necessary queries relating to air travel below:

2. What enhanced measures have been taken to thoroughly clean aircraft cabins?

Cathay Pacific:
Additional disinfecting of the aircraft is carried out upon a confirmed case of Covid-19 after a flight. The entire process takes up to five hours, and is completed only by trained cleaning professionals. This is done on top of daily cleaning and sanitising.

Emirates:
Our aircraft cabins undergo enhanced cleaning and disinfecting, which is what all Emirates aircraft go through in Dubai after each journey.
Our aircraft cabins have been fitted with advanced HEPA air filters which remove 99.97% of viruses and eliminate dust, allergens, and germs from cabin air for a healthier and safer on-board environment.

Emirates has also added a cabin service assistant (CSA) to complement the crew on flights over 1.5 hours. CSAs ensure lavatories are cleaned every 45 minutes. Each lavatory is equipped with sanitising soap and hand washing instructions.

Items such as mattresses, pillows, blankets and  headphones are hygienically sealed. All baggage have to be checked-in and customers can only bring essential items such as a laptop, handbag, briefcase or baby items on board.

KLM/Air France:
Aircraft being cleaned more frequently and thoroughly and keeping contact moments between crew and passengers during the flight to a minimum. In addition, passengers from high-risk areas will have to fill in a health declaration to assess whether they are fit to fly.

The risk of contamination on board aircraft is low. Modern aircraft are equipped with High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filters, which provide clean, high-quality cabin air with a high degree of air circulation. The air is replaced every three minutes by the aircraft’s built-in air supply system. The air flow in the aircraft goes from top to bottom, which further reduces the chance of ‘horizontal’ transmission in the cabin. Moreover, the air flows quickly, which is not conducive to the dispersion of droplets. Furthermore, the passengers all sit with their faces in the same direction, so there is little face-to-face interaction, and the seats form a barrier to the transmission forward or backward in the cabin.

AirAsia:
Deep Cleaning:
Every night, our aircraft undergo a 2-hour disinfection process using cleaning agents approved by the Public Health Authority and aircraft manufacturer.

Cabin Sterilisation:
Before each flight, the aircraft is sprayed with an aerosol disinfectant.

HEPA Air Filters:
All our aircraft are equipped with HEPA filters, normally used in hospitals, which filter out particles and airborne contaminants such as viruses and bacteria.

3. Are you looking to cut any of your existing routes?

Cathay Pacific:
While we have reduced 96% of our capacity, flying to just 15 destinations since April, we will be gradually increasing frequencies and restoring more destinations in the months of June and July. We will be bringing back Amsterdam, Melbourne, Paris, Toronto, Osaka, Melbourne, San Francisco and more.

With Hong Kong International Airport resuming transit services from 1 June, we are pleased to be able to offer passengers more options should they require essential travel.

WhatsApp Customer Service is now available and launched, can be reached at +852 2747 2747 for any flight bookings, Marco Polo Club, and Asia Miles queries from 9am to 6pm daily.

Cathay Pacific is the first airline in Asia to launch WhatsApp Customer Service. For more information, visit www.cathaypacific.com.

Emirates:
We are working closely with the authorities to plan the resumption of operations to additional destinations. As of today, we have reinstated regular flights to nine destinations which are London Heathrow, Frankfurt, Paris, Milan, Madrid, Chicago, Toronto, Sydney and Melbourne.  We stand ready to resume flying to other destinations as soon as the situation allows. Timelines will depend on a number of external factors including government approvals, easing of travel restrictions, and putting in place whatever new protocols regulators require to ensure the health and safety of crew and customers.

KLM/Air France:
Where many airlines did not operate any flights, Air France and KLM kept some flights (repatriation flights) going to bring people back from Europe and transport/facilitate cargo movements. We are now slowly increasing flights to more and more destinations.

KLM is currently also working on helping the shipping sector and seafarers,

For more information, visit:
https://corporate.airfrance.com/en/news/air-france-progressively-increasing-its-flight-schedule and
https://news.klm.com/airline-industry-steps-in-to-help-shipping-sector-and-seafarers/

AirAsia:
AirAsia resumed its scheduled domestic flights in Malaysia from 29 April 2020, followed by Thailand (1 May 2020), the Philippines (16 May 2020), and Indonesia (7 May 2020), subject to approval from the authorities. Strict health controls and social distancing protocol are in place, in compliance with the regulations. The resumption of services will initially be for key selected domestic routes, which will increase gradually to include international destinations around the region, once the situation improves and governments lift borders and travel restrictions. 

For more information, visit:
https://newsroom.airasia.com/news/2020/4/29/airasia-returning-to-service-stronger

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