Garuda drops plan to replace face masks for cabin crew; Indonesia reports 1,041 new cases

Garuda Indonesia Friday said it is scrapping a plan to replace the use of face masks for its flight attendants after passengers complained they could not tell “whether the cabin crew was smiling or frowning” because half of their face is covered. Garuda president director Irfan Setiaputra previously announced the airline was considering face shields as an alternative to masks to ensure positive interactions between the cabin crew and travellers. On Friday, however, Irfan said face shields “will not replace face masks but will complement them instead”. “We are evaluating the most appropriate and safe PPE (personal protective equipment) to be used by our flight crew while also considering the comfort and freedom of interaction with passengers, ” Irfan said. Garuda corporate secretary Mitra Piranti said Wednesday that cabin crews would still wear masks and gloves during flights while the airline waits for a new safety guideline to be issued. Other forms of PPE will also be issued for flight attendants, including single-use aprons to be worn when serving in-flight meals, he added. Garuda’s plan to replace face masks with face shields received backlash from social media users, who slammed both the complaining passengers as well as the airline. Meanwhile, the Covid-19 cases in Indonesia rose by 1,041 within one day to 43,803, with the death toll adding by 34 to 2,373, Achmad Yurianto, a Health Ministry official, said at a press conference here on Friday.<br/>