No quarantine, distancing on flights in new guidelines

People arriving into the country will not need to go for the 14 days quarantine unless they are showing signs of coronavirus, the Transport ministry has said.

Transport Cabinet Secretary James Macharia said only people with signs such as high temperatures will be put on mandatory quarantine when flights resume on August 1, 2020.

“Passengers shall be exempted from quarantine on arrival if their body temperatures are below 37.5° and they show no Covid-19 symptoms,” said Macharia yesterday.

The CS also said airlines will not have to drastically reduce the number of passengers for them to fly, saying that if they carried less than 75 per cent in their flights, they would incur losses.

“The passengers must go with Covid-19 free certificate. I would expect that if you are flying out, it would be prudent for you to be tested because you may not be allowed into other countries,” he said.

He laid out several protocols the ministry has come up with to curb the spread of the virus even as the country prepares to open the airspace for domestic and international flights in the next few weeks.

On late-night flights, the CS said an exception would be made for passengers who have to catch a late-night flight.

“If you are flying at night and you show the boarding pass/ticket, you will be allowed to go to the airport with your driver,” he said.

The CS also announced the resumption of the Standard Gauge Railway commuter train next Monday.