Vietjet urges testing after Phuket passenger gets Covid-19

Budget airline operator Vietjet Air put out a statement addressing an incident involving one of their passengers being diagnosed with Covid-19. The passenger travelled last week, and 2 days ago the airline put out a call for those seated near the infected passenger to come forward and seek testing and treatment.

The flight in question was Vietjet Air flight VZ314 from Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport to Phuket. The flight left Bangkok at 7:20 am and arrived in Phuket at 8:40 am on June 25.

The memo was marked urgent and released to the public to attempt to reach other passengers that were seated near the traveller who was later diagnosed as having Covid-19. They requested that anyone seated nearby the infected passenger, who sat in seat 3C, report to the nearest government hospital and get a Covid-19 test.

The alert that Vietjet released warned that anyone sitting nearby is at high risk for exposure to Covid-19, though it stops short of outright saying that the passenger in that seat has Covid-19. The statement explains that it is a follow-up on a report by the Phuket Covid-19 Information Centre which identified the traveller as being infected after they were tested upon landing at Phuket airport.

The plane in question has been subjected to enhanced cleaning and disinfection measures every day since the case was identified, and flight crew, cabin crew, and even ground staff that may have come into proximity with flight 314 have now all been quarantined. The airline announced abundantly cautious actions and reiterated that they were already practising Covid-19 preventive hygiene measures.

“As of now, Thai Vietjet is operating domestic services as usual under highly hygienic and sanitizing practices, including sterilizing the aircraft, requesting all passengers, pilots, and cabin crew to wear surgical masks at all time during the flights, suspending food and beverage services on board, and so forth. Our priority is to protect and prevent our valued passengers from Covid-19 and ensure all fly safely with us on every flight.”

Vietjet Air confirms that they have complied with all safety regulations and guidelines set forth by the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand, the Ministry of Public Health, and the World Health Organisation.

SOURCE: The Phuket News