Omicron variant: Cathay Pacific requires London-Hong Kong passengers to test Covid-19 negative within 24 hours of departure

Hong Kong’s flagship carrier sets tougher screening rules for passengers than legally required to reduce threat of route suspension

From Friday, Cathay’s Heathrow passengers can only board Hong Kong flights if they test Covid-19 negative within 24 hours of departure – halving the time demanded by officials

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Cathay is requiring its Hong Kong-bound passengers in London to test negative for the coronavirus within 24 hours of boarding.
Photo: Bloomberg

Published: 7:46pm, 21 Dec 2021Updated: 9:03pm, 21 Dec 2021

Cathay Pacific will only allow London passengers to board its flights to Hong Kong if they have tested Covid-19 negative within 24 hours of departure, imposing even stricter requirements than mandated by officials in an attempt to preserve the route, the Post has learned.

The tougher screening requirement announced on Tuesday was part of the airline’s efforts to reduce the risk of Hong Kong authorities banning flights from Britain amid a surge of Omicron infections detected at Heathrow Airport, a company source said.

Cathay’s one-day window for preflight testing will take effect on Friday, coinciding with the city government shortening that period for all inbound flights from 72 to 48 hours. In the interim, Hong Kong’s flagship carrier is paying for its London passengers to take an extra coronavirus test for free on their day of travel.

“These are additional measures we are taking to ensure our Hong Kong bound passengers test negative on arrival, thereby facilitating the arrival experience for all and to support the local community’s effort to combat the virus,” the airline told affected passengers on Tuesday.

For the next three days, passengers must take a Covid-19 antigen test provided by the airline without charge during the check-in process. When the new arrangements come into force on Friday, travellers will have to cover the cost of the Covid-19 test themselves as typically required for pre-departure tests.

Two Cathay flights have been banned from New York and Ho Chi Minh City in the past fortnight, after three cases were detected on both Hong Kong routes on December 19 and December 8 respectively.

On Monday, Hong Kong authorities announced tougher rules covering the suspension of flights as well as pre-boarding tests, both taking effect on Friday.

Any airline bringing at least four coronavirus-positive passengers to Hong Kong within a seven-day period will be barred from flying that route for two weeks. Existing rules remaining in force trigger bans when three passengers on the same flight test positive for the coronavirus, or where there is at least one infected traveller on the same service as another with the incorrect paperwork.