Dublin, 3 December, 2020:  Aer Lingus welcomes yesterday’s publication of a new report by the European Centre for Disease Control (ECDC) which stated that air passengers should not be considered high risk for spreading Covid-19 and should be treated like members of the local population who have not had any direct contact with an infected person.

The ECDC said “Based on the latest scientific evidence and information, the document’s conclusions reflect the fact that the prevalence of the new coronavirus among travellers is estimated to be lower than is the case for the general population. In addition, the measures in place in aviation minimise the possibility of transmission during air travel.”

Patrick Ky, Executive Director at EASA said “It builds on the measures already in place with the Aviation Health Safety Protocol and reinforces the view that there is no inherent risk in air travel – indeed air travellers are seen as a relatively “COVID-safe” population.”

Welcoming the announcement, Aer Lingus believes this will give additional confidence to Governments and citizens that air travel is a safe activity, and that every step has been taken by airlines and airports to ensure the safety of customers. 

Aer Lingus also recently welcomed the adoption in Ireland of the EU Traffic Light System, as well as increased availability of testing at Irish airports.  Aer Lingus believes these are all positive first steps towards facilitating increased international travel in 2021, which will be critical to any recovery Irish economy, and that ultimately a rapid antigen testing regime needs to be the next, step as only a rapid, affordable and scalable testing solution will facilitate a meaningful increase in safe international travel. 

The ECDC report states that:

• Air travellers account for <1% of all detected COVID-19 cases and do not increase the rate of COVID-19 transmission
• The prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in travellers is likely to be lower than the prevalence in the general population or among contacts of confirmed cases
• Travellers should not be considered as a high-risk population, nor treated as contacts of COVID-19 cases, unless they had been in known contact with a confirmed positive case.
• Travellers should be subject to the same regulations or recommendations as applied to the local population.
• Member States should always admit their own nationals and EU citizens and their family members resident in their territory, and should facilitate swift transit through their territories.
• In the current epidemiological situation, quarantine or systematic testing for SARS-CoV-2 of air travellers is not recommended.
• Harmonisation among Member States is recommended based on the specific measures presented in this document.

-ENDS

Notes to Editors

Measures to protect our customers:

Face coverings or masks are mandatory on all Aer Lingus flights for customers and cabin crew respectively, with the exception of small children and those who are unable to wear a face mask for medical reasons.

Aer Lingus has introduced significantly enhanced cleaning processes and procedures on all aircraft. Hospital grade disinfectant is used to treat all hard surfaces. Tray tables, arm rests and windows are deep cleaned by hand and the interior of every aircraft is thoroughly disinfected daily.

All Aer Lingus Airbus aircraft are fitted with state-of-the-art air filtration technology as standard. These are the same air filters that are used in hospital operating theatres.  99.97% of airborne particles such as viruses and bacteria are removed by this air filtering technology and cabin air is fully replaced every three minutes.

Aer Lingus also introduced new boarding and disembarkation procedures.  Passengers board and disembark the aircraft in small groups and according to seat row numbers. At the boarding gate, customers scan their own boarding card and show their passport or ID to the Aer Lingus staff, making this process contactless.