BA and Hong Kong flight
BA31/32 has been one of the few BA longhaul operating daily for quite a while.
Hong Kong had mostly zero community cases in the past two months (and a few imported cases from returning residents.). But the past few days have seen a surge in community cases.
Three pilots and a crew have recently tested positive.
While all incoming pax are tested at the airport and forced to strict quarantine (at home with wristbands and no exit whatever the reason, or in dedicated centers), airline and ship crews were exempted.
HK has decided to test all crews upon arrival. Apparently, if a member if positive, the whole crew will be quarantined.
Pilots have protested that it will make them lose two hours on arrival. UA and AA stated that it could create serious operational problems for them and postponed the resumption of their flights.The very light loads did help in reaching that decision. European airlines are asking for tests administered before departure from Europe rather than upon arrival. I wonder what will be the outcome for BA31/32. With rather light load, potential disruptions if crews test positive could mean stopping BA32/31.
On the other hand, I believe that longhaul airlines (with crew spending time at destination) should expect their crew to be systematically tested in the new normal. Some airlines already do.
I flew BA32 a few days ago. I was little worried by my fellow pax who originated in HK where there had been no community cases for the past three weeks, but worried about being infected by BA staff. After F sandwich service, I was astonished to see 7 or 8 FAs chatting maskless in the J galley.