Singapore’s national carrier hopes to be the first airline in the world to have all its crew members vaccinated for Covid-19.
CNN Travel has been informed by Singapore Airlines (SIA), that all their crew members, including gate agents and pilots, were offered free coronavirus vaccinations by the Singaporean government.
Two shots of the Pfizer vaccine were required by the country.
Goh Choon Phong (CEO) of the airline said that “We are grateful for the Singapore government making the aviation sector priority in the country’s vaccination exercise.” The statement was sent to all employees on January 18.
“This is a reflection of the sector’s importance and the critical role we play in Singapore’s economic recovery as well as the fight against the pandemic.”
According to the airline 5,200 SIA employees signed up for their shots already. Inoculations will start in a few days.
Phong was one of the first people in Singapore to be vaccinated. He was also a transport minister for Singapore, Ong Ye Kung. Phong has had his first shot and reports that it was easy and painless.
Crew members who have been vaccinated will no longer be under surveillance and subject to fewer security measures related to coronavirus. This means that flight crew members who have been tested seven days after returning to Singapore for vaccination will not be required to undergo this test in the future.
The success of Singapore’s pandemic response has been due to the closure of borders and a national contract-tracing application. According to Johns Hopkins University data, the country has only 29 deaths and 59,113 confirmed cases.
However, many residents of the city-state expressed an interest in traveling again. The much-hyped “travel boom” with Hong Kong was postponed after a spike in viral cases in December.
Singapore was ranked second on the Henley Passport Index for passport power, just one point behind Japan. Singaporeans are permitted to enter more than 190 countries and territories in the world without requiring a visa.