As countries around the Singapore Airlines (SIA) network reveal plans to slowly reopen, a new “fast lane” agreement was announced for business travel between Singapore and China. From 8 June, this new scheme applied to flights between Singapore and six provinces in China: Shanghai, Tianjin, Chongqing, Guangdong, Jiangsu and Zhejiang.
This agreement exempts travellers on both sides from the mandatory 14-day quarantine measures in place in Singapore, but there are other requirements. For China travellers visiting Singapore, these include doing a Covid-19 swab test before departure and upon arrival at Changi and remaining in isolation in a non-residential accommodation until the test result is known. These travellers are also not allowed to take mass public transport, and have to download the TraceTogether app for the duration of their stay. Similar requirements will also apply to Singapore travellers visiting China.
The Singapore Government has also indicated that discussions for other business travel “fast lanes” are currently ongoing with countries such as South Korea, New Zealand and Malaysia.
The news comes on the heels of Singapore Airlines and regional wing SilkAir announcing the reinstatement of certain scheduled services in June and July, subject to regulatory approvals. This would entail around 500 additional flights to destinations that include Adelaide, Amsterdam, Auckland, Barcelona, Brisbane, Cebu, Christchurch, Copenhagen, Hong Kong, Medan, Melbourne and Osaka.
Singapore Airlines’ travellers will also be able to transit through Changi Airport from selected cities in Australia and New Zealand, namely Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney, Auckland and Christchurch, to any destination in SIA’s group network operated by SIA, SilkAir or Scoot, from June 11.
In view of the reintroduced flights, Singapore Airlines will roll out a range of health and safety initiatives, and enhanced several existing measures, as part of a comprehensive review of the end-to-end customer journey. Some of these initiatives include providing information on the health and safety measures during the pre-flight stage, at the airport, on board the aircraft, and upon arrival in a new online e-brochure. This will also be sent to all customers before their flights.
Find out more about these health and safety initiatives in the video below or click here to read more.
Before booking your next flight, make sure you are fully up to date with the latest requirements by following these links to the most current travel advisories.
International Air Transport Association (IATA)
IATA maintains an interactive travel regulations map to show which countries have complete restrictions, partial restrictions or no restrictions
International SOS
Medical and security services company International SOS publishes an interactive map with details on travel restrictions and screening procedures around the world
OpsGroup
World airspace and airports monitor OpsGroup publishes the latest alerts and changes that affect international flight operations
GardaWorld
The world’s largest privately owned security services company hosts Crisis24, a live tracker of global alerts on lockdown measures, quarantine protocols and regional outbreaks
SEE ALSO: Measures to safeguard Singapore Airlines’ customers and crew
