The Minister of Health will review the testing regime for international air crew to make sure its rigorous enough, after speaking with Air New Zealand this morning.
Air New Zealand says while it is open to improvements, it has not had a Covid-19 case in the airline since April. Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon
Chris Hipkins will also take a "very close" look at the system airlines are supposed to have in place with hotels, to keep crew separate from other guests.
In a statement, Air New Zealand says it has strict protocols in place that were established "in conjunction" with the Ministry of Health and vary depending on the level of risk.
"We know these have been working because since early April, we haven't had a case of Covid-19 in the airline," says chief executive Greg Foran.
But he acknowledges "all systems and processes should be regularly reviewed" and says it's "committed to working with government to do even more to protect our staff, customers and New Zealanders from Covid-19".
Hipkins says part of the problem is they are dealing with other countries as well.
"One of the things that we've got to look at is what the testing regimes on the other side are, in some cases, aircrew are being required to test before they leave the country," he says.
"They're being required to test when they arrive in another country. And then they're being asked to test when they get back to New Zealand, which clearly is, is an unsustainable level of testing for one person to undertake, it wouldn't be in their own health interests to do that.
"So we just got to work our way through all of those practical ins and outs to make sure that the regime is is as robust as possible."
Foran says "it's fair to say our pilots and cabin crew have borne the brunt of the impact of Covid-19, on a very personal level".
"This has tremendous impact on their everyday life and wellbeing. As does having to self-isolate back at home upon returning from higher risk destinations. This causes disconnection from family, friends and everyday activities," he says.
"To be clear, most of our international destinations have strict protocols in place to ensure crew are not exposed to Covid-19 during their layover.
"Any crew who are symptomatic, or who have had to break isolation offshore to seek medical attention, for example, must enter quarantine on return to New Zealand.
"Our crew take their responsibility of keeping themselves, their colleagues and our customers safe very seriously. We stand with them and appreciate what they are doing to return people to their homes and get our economy moving again."
Precautions taken by the airline (provided by Air New Zealand):
On all flights
- Crew wear masks and gloves when interacting with passengers
- Crew wear full PPE when dealing with unwell passengers
For medium risk layovers, including Narita, Hong Kong, Shanghai
- Air crew wear masks and gloves when moving through the terminal
- Air crew use private crew transport to hotels, not mixing with other passengers
- Air crew isolate in hotels, limiting trips outside to 1hr per 24-hour period
- Air crew are not allowed to use the hotel gym or pool while on layover
- Air crew are not allowed to meet with other crew while on layover
For high risk layovers - San Francisco and Los Angeles
- Air crew wear masks and gloves when moving through the terminal
- Air crew use private crew transport to hotels, not mixing with other passengers
- Air crew isolate in hotels for duration of layover
- Air crew are not allowed to use the hotel gym or pool while on layover
- Air crew are not allowed to meet with other crew while on layover
- All food must be delivered to rooms
- On return home, air crew must isolate for 48 hours, complete a COVID-19 test, then isolate until test results are known
Additional measures
In addition to the Ministry of Health measures outlined above, Air New Zealand has also put in place a range of its own measures, including:
- Segregating A320 crew so they do not operate both internationally and domestically
- Cleaning the aircraft with antiviral products approved for use by aircraft manufacturers and the World Health Organisation
- Providing hand sanitiser on board and in airports for customer use
- Requiring passengers on board domestic and international services to wear masks, replaced every 3-4 hours on long haul flights
- Ensuring aircrew have multiple channels through which to raise concerns
- Strongly encouraging Auckland Airport-based staff to be tested in response to the recent outbreak in Auckland. This has resulted in huge numbers of staff presenting for voluntary tests.
Foreign government testing requirements
In addition to the government's requirements, several of the international destinations require Covid-19 testing of aircrew before departure, on arrival, or both.
This includes prior to operating flights to Hong Kong, China and Samoa.
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