“A debacle”.
This was how some of the nearly 200 passengers of an Anglo-German airline Tui flight on 25 August made the journey from the Greek island Zante to the Welsh capital Cardiff, which happened when, upon landing, they had to be quarantined at the possibility of having been infected with coronavirus.
One passenger said the flight was full of “covidiotas.” Others claimed that there was “not much” surveillance by the crew about social estating rules to prevent covid-19 and that many people did not use masks properly.
In the end, 16 passengers tested positive for the coronavirus, so everyone on board – 193 more manned travellers – had to undergo a mandatory two-week quarantine as soon as they arrived in the UK.
The airline said safety was one of its priorities. “Our crew is trained to the highest standards,” he said.
“A full investigation (of what happened) is underway, as these claims were not made during the flight” or the days immediately after, he added.
Health authorities said they believe seven people from three different sections of the aircraft were potentially infectious during the flight.
Giri Shankar of the Welsh Department of Public Health told the BBC that people returning from Zante in particular are “contracting the infection.”
Greece and its islands are exempt from the mandatory quarantine imposed by the London government for travellers from other destinations arriving in the United Kingdom, although on 29 August the British authorities updated their zante guidelines in the face of increased coronavirus cases on that island.
“Nice stay”
Stephanie Whitfield said she and her husband had unilaterally decided to isolate themselves before learning of the positive cases.
“This flight was a debacle. The man next to me had his mask around his neck. Not only did the airline not get his attention, but they gave him a free drink when he said he knew a crew member,” Whitfield said.
“A lot of people would take off their masks and wander the aisles to talk to others,” he said.
“As soon as the flight landed, many people removed their masks immediately. The flight was full of selfish ‘covidiotas’ and an inept crew who didn’t care what was going on,” he added.
Whitfield told the BBC that he saw a crew member ask a woman to put on her mask.
“But the vast majority of people were not told anything,” he said.
The couple said they requested a coronavirus test as they experience mild symptoms.
Victoria Webb was also on that same flight and said she learned of the outbreak when her mother sent her a link to a BBC News article while traveling to London from Cardiff.
“I was surprised and a little lost as to what was the best decision to make as it was halfway there,” she said.
“I spoke to the train manager, who was worried but professional and finally, after a conversation with head office, moved me to a car where I was alone for the rest of the trip,” she said.
“We also exchanged contacts so we could inform you when I had my test results,” he said.
Webb now quarantines according to government councils, but said he did not receive any communication from health authorities, such as monitoring and localization.
Preventive measures
The International Air Transport Association (Iata) strongly recommends that passengers cover their faces and crew use masks as one of several actions to reduce the risk of contracting covid-19s on board aircraft.
Additional measures proposed:
Temperature control of passengers and airport workers.
Boarding and disembarkation processes that reduce contact with other passengers or crew.
Limit movement inside the cabin during the flight.
More frequent and deep cabin cleaning.
Simplified meal service procedures to reduce crew movement and passenger interaction.
The Iata does not recommend restricting the use of the middle seat to create social estating on board aircraft.
“Wrestling”
Lee Evans, who also traveled on that flight,He wrote chaotic scenes at Zante Airport, where he said staff members manipulated passengers’ phones to verify boarding passes.
“Getting on the plane was a wrestling match for everyone,” he told the BBC. “There were people changing seats.”
“There wasn’t much surveillance on time to what passengers were doing on the plane,” although the requirement to wear masks on board was reinforced,” Evans said.
He said he received an email almost a week after the flight telling him and his family to isolate themselves, and said it was like a shock. “Someone must be held accountable, ” he opined.
Another passenger, who asked to be identified as Lewis, said he had flown 11 times in the last six weeks with several airlines and that all other flights were fine except Tui’s.
“Tui mismanaged the flight, ” he said. “We informed the cabin crew that people were constantly removing the mask. None of them approached those people,” he detailed.
“They should have told us to get ingessed before we got off the plane. We only found out from the news that this had happened. Five days later, I can’t tell you how many people I’ve had contact with,” he said.
Control difficulties
Travel expert Simon Calder said the amount of time it takes to get in touch with people was troubling.
“It is absolutely imperative that people follow the rules,” he warned.
“Speaking on behalf of cabin crews in general (…) it is very difficult to monitor a night flight from an island where it goes partying like Ibiza, or in this case, Zante,” he says.
Tui said Monday in a statement that follows protocol and informs passengers about the use of the mask.
“Passengers are informed prior to travel and by in-flight megaphone announcements that they must wear masks at all times and are not allowed to move around the cabin. Masks can only be removed when consuming food and beverages.”
