You know that moment when the plane lands and all the impatient passengers stand up shoulder to shoulder, believing it will get them off the plane faster? Well, old habits die hard and unfortunately, the threat of COVID-19 hasn’t stopped the phenomenon.
An Air New Zealand passenger, who asked to remain anonymous, told the NZ Herald that social distancing regulations were completely ignored on board a recent flight.
The traveller who flew from Auckland to Queenstown on NZ369 last Thursday said he stayed in his seat after landing but other passengers squished up shoulder to shoulder in the aisle.
The passenger reported feeling “vulnerable” and “really unsafe”.
“That disembarkment ruined everything I’ve been doing for the last two months. The whole thing flew out the window, it’s been so difficult these past two months”.
Anonymous Air New Zealand passenger
“Every rule has been broken in this five minutes of disembarking the plane. That one process could restart the whole thing.”
Air New Zealand released a statement on the incident saying it had now amended its boarding and disembarkation procedures to introduce social distancing during these stages of the journey.
This isn’t just an Air New Zealand issue, it’s likely to be a teething issue for many airlines as they return to the skies in the coming weeks and months.
Most airlines have released details of their COVID-19 safe plans and we’ve been reporting on them here Your Post COVID-19 Airline Health & Safety Guide as they come to hand.
The question is, how stringently can airlines stick to these new hygiene rules and will passengers obey the new orders?