The CEO of an Australian airline said he thinks “governments will push for vaccines for international travelers” as a condition of entry. “
Alan Joyce of Qantas Airways Limited told the BBC that he believes that “once everyone is vaccinated” governments will require international travelers to be vaccinated if they want to enter a country. He said they should no longer be quarantined in a hotel for 14 days as a means of entry.
Even if some countries decide against this policy, Joyce said he believes airlines should enforce their own guidelines, out of their “duty of care.”
“We have a duty of care to our passengers and our crew, saying that everyone on that plane must be safe,” said Joyce.
Joyce thinks passengers would support this change. He said 90 percent of the people he surveyed think it’s a “great idea.”
“The vast majority of our customers think this is a great idea – 90 percent of the people we surveyed believe it should be a requirement for people to be vaccinated to travel internationally,” said Joyce.
However, the World Health Organization does not agree with such a proposal. Bernardo Mariano, the organization’s director of digital health and innovation, shot down the initiative, telling the BBC, “We do not approve that a vaccination passport should be a prerequisite for travel.”
He added that no matter what the public sector is for, such a change requires a “unified approach by governments,” the BBC wrote.
The Hill has contacted the Centers for Disease Control for comment.
The aviation sector was hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. Earlier this month, the Airports Council International – North America released a report finding that U.S. airports would require $ 115.4 billion in infrastructure investment over the next five years to meet critical needs, including improving the airline passenger experience, the increase convenience, increase security and increase competition. and lowering prices for travelers.
However, the sector has seen a partial recovery in recent weeks. On Thursday, the Transportation Security Administration reported that on Wednesday more than 1.4 million people passed through U.S. airports, which was the eighth consecutive day that travel volume exceeded 1 million.
The last time airport activity was so high was in the week of March 15, 2020, when more than 1.5 million people passed TSA checkpoints before lockdowns and anti-air travel recommendations began.