Greece’s largest carrier Aegean Airlines on Monday announced enhanced health and safety measures on all domestic and international flights, to protect in-flight personnel and passengers from COVID-19.
"Having as absolute priority the health and safety of passengers and employees and in close cooperation with the authorities, the procedures in place for boarding, aircraft access, and inflight service have already been modified. As well as the protocols for cleaning and disinfecting of aircraft," the official announcement said.
According to AEGEAN’s new measures:
- The use of a face mask has become mandatory for both passengers and crew.
- Only one item is permitted in the cabin of the aircraft, either a personal item (women’s/men’s handbag or thin laptop case) or a carry on up to 8kg.
- 3 rows of seats will be kept vacant in case there is a need to isolate a passenger with potential coronavirus symptoms.
- To avoid queuing or any other unnecessary contact, special dividers have been placed in ticket offices and check in counters.
- Passengers are strongly encouraged to take advantage of all electronic and contactless services, before and during their flight.
- During boarding, a “touch-free-policy” is applied, thus passengers are asked to contactless indicate their travel documents and self-scan their boarding pass.
AEGEAN said it has increased standard aircraft cleaning procedures in between all its flights, in all stations in Greece and abroad, both during the day and after the completion of flights at night. The air recycling system on board aircraft is equipped with HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Arrestors) filters, capturing more than 99 percent of even microscopic bacteria and viruses, and cabin air is being renewed following the highest standards.
“The new processes, along with the application of personal hygiene practices by all, are considered necessary to safeguard the health and safety of both passengers and crew, to progressively restore air transport services and also to maintain the positive results, Greece has achieved for the control of the Covid-19 outbreak,” AEGEAN said.
Earlier this month, Aegean Airlines announced it will gradually restart flights from Athens to some major European destinations by the end of May, ending the suspension prompted by the coronavirus pandemic.
Aegean, a member of the Star Alliance airline group, suspended its international flights on March 26 as a result of flight restrictions related to the coronavirus crisis.
The carrier said it will restart operations from its Athens hub to Munich, Zurich, Frankfurt and Geneva, initially with a reduced timetable.
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