The inaugural air travel bubble (ATB) flight between Singapore and Hong Kong will kick off on November 22, allowing for leisure travel between the two places without the need for quarantine.
This marks the world’s first air travel bubble arrangement, after the pandemic forced the implementation of border restrictions globally.
Under the ATB, travellers between Singapore and Hong Kong will be subject to Covid-19 tests, in lieu of quarantine or stay-home notice. There will be no restrictions on the purpose of travel and no requirement for a controlled itinerary or sponsorship.
As a start, there will be one flight a day into each city, capped at 200 travellers per flight. This will be increased to two flights a day into each city from December 7. Travellers from both cities must travel on designated flights on Singapore Airlines (SIA) and Cathay Pacific.
If the Covid-19 situation deteriorates in either city, the travel bubble arrangements will be suspended, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore said in a statement on Wednesday.
Travellers must also meet the eligibility criteria and adhere to the prevailing border control measures and public health requirements of both cities, it added. More information is available here.
Transport minister Ong Ye Kung said: “The Singapore-Hong Kong Air Travel Bubble enables us to achieve two objectives at the same time – open up our borders in a controlled manner, while maintaining safety in our societies. While we may be starting small, this is an important step forward… It will be a useful reference for other countries and regions that have controlled the epidemic, and are contemplating opening their borders.”
The inaugural ATB flight from Singapore, SQ890, will depart on 22 November; while the inaugural ATB flight from Hong Kong, SQ891, will depart on 23 November, according to an SIA press release.
Customers who have existing bookings but do not meet the ATB requirements, or are travellers transiting through Singapore or Hong Kong and therefore not eligible for ATB flights, will have the option to be reaccommodated on SIA’s low-cost subsidiary Scoot instead.
However, passengers travelling on Scoot’s non-ATB flights must meet the entry requirements for Singapore or Hong Kong, and will have to serve either a stay-home notice or a quarantine.
All travellers are required to take a Covid-19 swab test 72 hours before the scheduled departure time of their designated ATB flight and obtain a negative test result. Upon arrival in Hong Kong, travellers from Singapore are required to take a second Covid-19 test, and must remain in the airport until their results are out. Travellers from Hong Kong arriving in Singapore are not subjected to another round of testing.
Conrad Clifford, IATA’s regional vice president for Asia Pacific, welcomed the impending start of the Hong Kong-Singapore ATB.
He said: “International air travel in Asia-Pacific is practically non-existent. Our latest figures for September show passenger demand at about 95 per cent below the same period last year. The Hong Kong-Singapore air travel bubble, though starting small, is a step in the right direction to reboot international travel in the region. We look forward to seeing Hong Kong and Singapore expand this arrangement with other destinations, and for other governments to adopt a similar approach.
“What is significant is that quarantine measures have been lifted for any travel between Hong Kong and Singapore, and is not limited to just business or essential travel. Replacing quarantine measures with Covid-19 testing will help in reopening borders, restore connectivity that jobs and the economy depend on, and give passengers confidence to travel.
“Standards and technological solutions will also be needed to facilitate the management, communication and verification of test results by the multiple stakeholders involved in the travel process. This is something we are working on with the parties in Hong Kong and Singapore.”
Inmarsat’s Passenger Confidence Tracker survey has determined that nine in 10 Asia-Pacific airline passengers will alter their travel habits for the long-term as a result of the pandemic, with half planning to travel less frequently by any means.
The survey, commissioned by Inmarsat and carried out by market research company Yonder. studied 10,000 airline passengers globally, including 2,500 from the Asia-Pacific region.
Ninety-three per cent of survey respondents in Asia-Pacific do not expecting to return to their previous travel routines once the pandemic is over, with 57 per cent describing their behaviour towards the pandemic as ‘highly cautious’, compared to 48 per cent globally.
The pandemic also seems to have sparked a shift in attitudes to travel in Asia, where 49 per cent of respondents expect to travel less by any means and 37 per cent plan to fly less in the future. This sentiment is stronger in India and South Korea, with 58 per cent and 55 per cent surveyed planning to travel less in the future respectively.
Despite this, there are early signs that Asia-Pacific travellers are starting to feel confident about flying again. Passengers in the region are more likely than the global average to have flown since the pandemic began: 41 per cent of Asia-Pacific respondents – and as much as 56 per cent of Indian respondents – have taken at least one flight since the pandemic reached their countries, compared to just 34 per cent globally.
The majority – 60 per cent – of Asia-Pacific passengers surveyed expect to feel fully ready to fly within the next year.
David Coiley, vice president Asia Pacific, Inmarsat Aviation, said: “The Passenger Confidence Tracker reveals that Asian travellers are more confident with the safety of the passenger journey than their counterparts.
This also reflects prevailing conditions in the region, where the spread of Covid-19 has largely abated across most markets, relative to other regions experiencing a resurgent wave of infections and further lockdowns. Given the level of consumer confidence, the outlook of the aviation industry in Asia-Pacific is looking optimistic.”
Coiley pointed to domestic travel recovery in China and India as most telling of the region’s travel confidence.
“In China, we saw domestic passenger volumes for the month of September increase from the same period last year, while domestic travel volumes in India are forecast to recover to pre-Covid levels by the end of the year,” he said.
When asked to rate their confidence around the safety and health precautions currently undertaken across all touchpoints throughout the journey, Asia-Pacific respondents recorded an aggregated score of 6.27 (with 10 being the highest level of confidence), higher than the global average score of 5.55.
The majority also perceive public spaces such as restaurants, cinemas, public transport, and public toilets to be either as risky, or even riskier than, taking a flight.
Asian respondents stated a need for clearer information about border restrictions, standardised practices across all airlines and a consistent worldwide set of safety standards as particular areas for improvement. Furthermore, respondents determined that wearing a face mask both inflight and in airports, and only being allowed to fly after a 48-hour test are the most effective personal safety measures. Only 10 per cent identified a 14-day quarantine as a top factor.
While the majority of Asia-Pacific passengers (65 per cent) surveyed feel satisfied with the aviation industry’s response to the challenges of Covid-19, the study reveals areas of opportunity for airlines to encourage passengers back to the skies.
Almost half (48 per cent ) of Asian respondents believe that reputation is a more significant factor when choosing an airline today than it was pre-pandemic. It has therefore never been more vital for airlines to differentiate and gain a competitive edge. The research highlights that improving inflight experience is one way to achieve this.
From extra legroom (44 per cent) to free baggage (36 per cent), value added services are becoming increasingly important to passengers returning to the skies. Digital solutions are fast-becoming essential to an enjoyable inflight experience, with four in ten respondents agreeing that on-board Wi-Fi matters more today than ever before.
Philip Balaam, president of Inmarsat Aviation, said: “With safety and reputation becoming even more important to today’s flyers, there is a clear need for airlines to differentiate themselves in order to encourage passengers back onto their flights.
“Digitalisation lies at the heart of both; minimising critical touchpoints in the passenger journey to improve confidence, all the while keeping passengers connected and entertained.”