May 25th was a big day for the Indian aviation industry post COVID-19, as limited airlines finally took to the skies again. The aviation industry also kept all parameters in check to detect if a passenger was COVID-19 positive and prevent him/her from entering the flight. Despite all this, a 24-year-old passenger tested positive for Covid-19 on an Indigo flight upon arrival at Coimbatore. Similarly, a passenger on a Delhi-Ludhiana Air India flight tested positive for coronavirus on the same day (May 25th)
Passengers Test Positive for Coronavirus In India
There’s been a lot of mixed reactions to our airlines starting again. While some people were overjoyed at the thought of our skies being full again and saying we would have to accept the times and move forward with precautions, there were others who thought the limited airlines starting again was a bad move and would increase the spread of the virus. However the Indian Civil Aviation Lay Down Rules For Future Of Air Travel, ensuring people that maximum precautions would be taken to ensure that all passengers would be safe. This would even include a personalised sanitisation kit for all passengers, no meals or magazines on board, social distancing at airports etc.
Despite all measures being in place, a passenger on the Chennai-Coimbatore IndiGo flight tested positive for COVID-19. The airline received confirmation from the Coimbatore airport doctor that the passenger tested positive.
“We received confirmation from the Coimbatore airport doctor that a passenger who travelled on 6E 381 from Chennai to Coimbatore on 25th May evening, has tested positive for Covid-19,” the airline said in a statement.
The airline further added that, “He was seated on-board the aircraft with all precautionary measures including face mask, face shield and gloves, as were the other passengers. Additionally, no one else was seated in his vicinity, significantly reducing the possibility of transmission.”
As precautionary measures the airline staff aboard the flight has been grounded for 14 days. Indigo said, “The operating crew has been grounded for 14 days and we are in the process of notifying other passengers as per the government guidelines, to ensure safety of our passengers and staff.”
We received confirmation from the Coimbatore airport doctor that a passenger who travelled on 6E 381 from Chennai to Coimbatore on 25th May evening, has tested positive for #COVID19: IndiGo statement #TamilNadu pic.twitter.com/QRNAFXwNIM
— ANI (@ANI) May 26, 2020
While news channels were contemplating that this could be the first confirmed COVID-19 case after flights resumed, reports came in that a 50 year old Air India security staff on board Delhi-Ludhiana flight tested positive. There were 11 other passengers on the same flight. The infected passenger was immediately sent to a local isolation centre, while others were sent on mandatory home quarantine.
In a separate incident, 2 passengers aboard a SpiceJet flight from Ahmedabad to Guwahati also tested positive for COVID-19. Passengers had travelled on SG-8194 (Ahmedabad-Delhi) & SG-8152 (Delhi-Guwahati).
An airline spokesperson said, “COVID tests were conducted at Guwahati after landing and the passengers were quarantined. The test reports came on May 27. The operating crew has been quarantined and SpiceJet is coordinating with government agencies in notifying other passengers who had travelled with them.”
A total of 58,318 passengers travelled on day 1 of flights resuming, of which 2 passengers tested positive after stepping out of their flights.