Britain's aviation sector grappled Monday with news that international arrivals will soon face a 14-day quarantine to stop new infections of coronavirus, which has already ravaged travel demand worldwide.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the proposal late Sunday under a lockdown easing plan that seeks to avoid a second spike in COVID-19, after more than 32,000 deaths so far.

Most international travellers will soon have to tell border officials where they will self-isolate for 14 days, or face quarantining in government-arranged accommodation, official guidance showed Monday.

COVID-19 has already ravaged the global economy and devastated the aviation sector, with airlines axing most flights in response to collapsing demand for air travel amid national lockdowns.

The quarantine - which will be introduced as soon as possible - sparked outcry from industry organisations Airlines UK and the Airport Operators Association (AOA).

"As leaders of UK airlines and airports, we are writing to you to express our collective and serious concern and frustration about the proposed quarantine measure for UK inbound travellers," Airlines UK and the AOA said in an open letter to Johnson.

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2020

Comments

Comments are closed.