WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 24th November, 2020) Systematic coronavirus testing of airline passengers would allow governments to manage the pandemic without border closures and quarantine measures that threaten to destroy global aviation and 46 million related jobs the industry supports, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) recommended following a unanimous vote at the group's annual meeting on Tuesday.
"Quarantines essentially kill demand for air travel and governments need to immediately consider the drastic socio-economic effect this is having. International air travel continues to be down 90 percent on 2019 levels. Current estimates are that as many as 46 million jobs supported by air travel could be lost and that the economic activity sustained by aviation will be reduced by US $1.8 trillion," the IATA said in a press release.
Many countries require arriving passengers to isolate for two weeks, with some nations essentially placing travelers under a form of house arrest in hotel rooms.
The IATA also recommended prioritization of aviation staff and international travelers to receive coronavirus vaccinations.
"We must manage how we live with the virus. But that does not have to mean destroying aviation, risking millions of jobs, crippling economies and tearing apart the international social fabric," IATA Director General Alexandre de Juniac said in the release.
Data collected from airline passengers thus far indicates that air travel is relatively safe. For example, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) report earlier in November estimated the odds of catching coronavirus in a two-hour domestic flight with a full cabin at one in 3,900 and one in 6,400 when middle seats are kept empty.
