The global pandemic, COVID-19, has turned the world upside down. People can’t work or travel like they used to. Now, the airports will have to introduce many changes to ensure that passengers health safety is maintained. So there is a good chance that many airlines, along with the airport authorities, are planning to do a thorough screening of every person that enters the airport to board a flight. As a traveller, at least for the next few months or even years, get ready to arrive at the airport hours before your flight is scheduled to fly. This will be both for domestic and international flights.
Lesser Time To Spend in Spas and Airport Lounges
Before, when you reached the airport early and checked-in your luggage, collected the boarding pass, you could indulge in the luxuries of the airport. You could go to the airport lounge and relax and drink your favourite wine or get a spa. But that is not going to happen anymore. Most of your time after arriving early at the airport will be spent on getting proper health screening by the authorities.
SOP Guidelines Changed by the AAI
Airports Authority of India (AAI) has tweaked the standard operational guidelines (SOP) and now will only allow select food and beverages outlet to be open during the global pandemic. With that, alcohol won’t be allowed to consume unless the traveller/passenger has special permission from the local administration. The food will be served to you in takeaway boxes. Even the seating arrangements in the airports are going to change, and passengers will likely have to maintain a distance of at least 1 or 1.5 meters when seating. The cleaning and sanitisation of the airport will be made more frequent, and now the staff will be maintained to overlook everything in the airport, even near the washrooms and X-Ray machines. All of this is likely to be witnessed in the airport post lockdown. For now, the lockdown has been extended by two more weeks, and there is no clarity on when commercial airline operations can resume.
