hugolover

I don’t see any message for the Italy situation. All I see is the entry ban and China as the Covid-19 related items.

Kid Flyer

same here is there a link to the source?

craz

To be fair, it should 1st be known how those in VCE traveled, if they went by train or arrived by ship then the Airport shouldnt be a problem, especially if someone is only connecting and not staying in Venice. I could see where a carrier may wavier fees if a passengers destination was Venice. yet I fully understand why a person would rather not connect via VCE but they always have the option of paying a fee and any upfare to avoid VCE

chris63

It’s ambiguous but there are changed & changing entry requirements for Countries & updated travel advisories, certainly those include Italy & that’s the Irish Governments advice.

LH needs to start thinking about it’s pax well-being first & stop being behind the curve on this Pandemic

hugolover

I agree.

With Corona in China, HKG réduction, Italy, her P and O Class dumping, I would say our Helga is in for a very grim financial quarter.

Flying Lawyer

everybody needs to think of his/her own well being and this is certainly a very personal risk. As long as they are expected to fly and there are no government restrictions I can appreciate that they enforce ticket rules - whether I like it or not.

behuman

One more time you got it exactly right Flying Lawyer! Life is risky and each of us should make his/her own decision by bearing the cost of it. Mass hysteria is no major force and a contract is a contract.

It appears that after just talking with friends from Piacenza, that many people are freaking out there. I love when Italians get dramatic, would be an idea for a film from late maestro Fellini. The Wuhan virus may end up doing more damage to the brains
and the economy than actually kill people - 150 000 sadly appear to die anyway each year from influenza in Europe and Italy has a bad record regarding road death.

To the OP, nobody knows if at the date you will be flying there will not be an outbreak in Zagreb. On 11 March the Italians will have terminated their quarantaine anyway and the virus might be contained or have spread over all Europe.

sophialite

I think it’s a bit dangerous to be comparing covid favorably to the flu. The virus is certainly more deadly and spreads more easily. It’s really irritating when people dismiss it and talk about influenza.

That said, I also agree that the dangers are a bit overstated. The death rate is low, especially if you’re under the age of 50 and have no underlying health conditions. I am personally not concerned about contracting the virus despite my travel patterns. I won’t wear a mask as that’s actually counterintuitive, but using good hand hygiene has always been a habit as we all know what germ cesspools airplanes and airports can be. And even if I did contract it, I’m fairly certain I’d survive it.

The situation in Italy will likely get worse. And the virus will likely spread everywhere. But I’m not sure the latter would influence ticketing rules. When a virus is declared a pandemic, the mitigation strategy shifts away from containment, as a lot of the actions taken to contain can he counterproductive when a virus has already spread so much. The implication is that I’m not sure airlines will be so quick to give cancellation rights to passengers if the virus becomes more of a global phenomenon rather than one specific to a handful of countries.

chris63

Agree with all of that but where we are now, it’s still containment & forcing pax to use their tickets to known problem areas is morally reprehensible

LH is a business, they will have to live with their morals & ethics

hugolover

There is precedent to suspend flights to Italy. Kuwait Airways have suspended all flights to Italy.
Bulgarian Air have suspended Milan to 27th March.

First case in Croatia now... from Italy.

whiskey_sk

well, there are 2 confirmed cases in Austria as of today afternoon...

hugolover

The Politburo doesn’t want to take the nuclear option and shut borders, flights and take drastic measures, but if it were your family you’d have hit that button as soon as the slightest sniff of it hitting the fan was likely.

They will pay the price for their indecision by doing nothing.

The virus is always two weeks ahead. It’s a very dangerous foe.

hugolover

Add a confirmed case in CH to that list. Plus BCN now.
And no known recent travel to affected areas or contact with affected persons.

chris63

It’s a Pandemic, only politics stops them declaring the blindingly obvious

sophialite

yup