KQ Sets Up New Protocols As It Plans To Return To The Skies

The Kenya Airways (KQ) is planning to return back to the skies but as expected, operations are not going to be normal after disruptions by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The resumption plans follow a directive from President Uhuru Kenyatta on Saturday, 6, June 2020, who ordered the Ministry of Transport to work in conjunction with the Ministry of Health and other experts to develop protocols for air transport locally.

“In the meantime, the Ministry of Transport is directed within seven days, to engage all key stakeholders and develop protocols to guide resumption of local air travel,” the president had announced.

The directive was a sigh of relief to local airlines and especially KQ whose passenger flights had been grounded for the first time in 40 years due to the ban on international travels to control Covid-19 spread.

However, new protocols have to be put in place to ensure the airline runs its operations smoothly and as well as reduce the spread of the virus in the transport sector.

According to the new protocols seen by Daily Nation, KQ plans to bring a number of changes in its operations which will touch on the following areas; terminals, check-ins, flights, boarding zones, and other places.

The protocols show that the arrival time has been increased by an hour where local travelers will have to be at the airport two hours before their respective flights while international travelers will have to three hours early. The travelers will only be allowed in if they have their masks on.

Travelers have also been told to brace for longer queuing time at the airports since temperature checking, sanitizing and other measures to reduce Covid-19 will be going on.

Airport staff will have to frequently sanitize after attending to guests while they will be seating inside counters retrofitted by antimicrobial screens.

On social-distancing, passengers will have to stand on floor markings that indicate social distancing while seats will also be arranged to adhere to the rule. The seats will also be frequently disinfected. Boarding flights will be based on zones and not a priority.

In the flights, the measures will apply mostly to the attendants and cutleries. The attendants will no longer have to look cool in the flights, so if you have fallen in love with one, you will have to wait until they are out of work.

The cabin crew will have to be in full Personal Protective Equipment while the passengers will have to wear their masks throughout the flights.

Cutlery, meal boxes, and other packages will be single-wrapped while the airline has introduced a new individual packaging towel and blankets which will be used once and then disposed of.

Social distancing in the planes is however not likely to work as the most airline has not adjusted their seats to conform to the rule.KQ has kept numb on this issue.

Airplanes will also be disinfected after every flight. Passengers will carry their luggage using trollies which will have to be regularly disinfected.

All these protocols are however going to cost the already cash-strapped KQ millions of shillings if they are all adhered to, but for it to survive it will have to.