Global airport group says pandemic safety rules to lengthen pre-departure waits

New global guidelines featuring physical distancing to restart aviation safely during the coronavirus pandemic could add up to two hours of pre-departure time for passengers at some airports during peak hours, the head of an international airports' group said on Tuesday. "A large airport with low volume, they should not need much more time for the passenger to come to the airport to keep the physical distancing," Angela Gittens, director general of Airports Council International (ACI), told reporters. "At a smaller airport or an airport that has peaking, I would say that it is going to be another hour or even two hours." A United Nations aviation agency-led task force has published guidance for airlines, airports and countries to achieve a uniform approach to flying safely during the coronavirus pandemic, although it stopped short of providing specific requirements for the hard hit industry’s recovery. The guidance includes having travellers wear masks, and stand at least a metre apart at airports. The guidelines, backed by industry, address the current hodgepodge of rules put in place during the coronavirus pandemic that make flying different in almost every country.<br/>