Heathrow reopens separate terminal for red-list arrivals
Heathrow has reopened a terminal dedicated to processing passengers flying into London from countries on the UK’s Covid red list. Britain’s biggest airport has again turned Terminal 4 into a red-list facility to separate travellers from high-risk destinations amid concerns over the newly identified Omicron Covid variant. The government reactivated its red list last week with 10 countries from southern Africa now included, meaning passengers coming from those locations must go into officially managed hotel quarantine for 11 nights. The west London airport ran a separate arrivals terminal, which was initially T3 and later T4, for red-list travel between June and the start of November, before travel restrictions were briefly relaxed. T4 was then mothballed until its reopening on Wednesday to process red-list flights. The move was prompted by concerns over passengers from different destinations mixing, especially with long waits at border control as volumes of passengers rise, carrying increased documentation. Tougher travel rules have been reintroduced by the government since the discovery of the Omicron variant, including the requirement for fully vaccinated people entering the UK to self-isolate until they receive a negative result from a PCR test. The move has punctured optimism in the travel sector, with demand having been briefly rekindled when restrictions were eased to allow returning vaccinated travellers to use cheaper lateral flow tests without self-isolation until any positive test results. Heathrow‘s COO, Emma Gilthorpe, said: “We are supportive of measures that protect public health and prevent the spread of Covid. The rapid introduction of restrictions for international travel will nonetheless be a further significant blow for British exporters and those wanting to visit friends and relatives. Keeping the changes under constant review, and a government commitment to the removal of red-list countries as soon as it is safe to do so, will help.”<br/>
https://portal.staralliance.com/cms/news/hot-topics/2021-12-02/general/heathrow-reopens-separate-terminal-for-red-list-arrivals
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Heathrow reopens separate terminal for red-list arrivals
Heathrow has reopened a terminal dedicated to processing passengers flying into London from countries on the UK’s Covid red list. Britain’s biggest airport has again turned Terminal 4 into a red-list facility to separate travellers from high-risk destinations amid concerns over the newly identified Omicron Covid variant. The government reactivated its red list last week with 10 countries from southern Africa now included, meaning passengers coming from those locations must go into officially managed hotel quarantine for 11 nights. The west London airport ran a separate arrivals terminal, which was initially T3 and later T4, for red-list travel between June and the start of November, before travel restrictions were briefly relaxed. T4 was then mothballed until its reopening on Wednesday to process red-list flights. The move was prompted by concerns over passengers from different destinations mixing, especially with long waits at border control as volumes of passengers rise, carrying increased documentation. Tougher travel rules have been reintroduced by the government since the discovery of the Omicron variant, including the requirement for fully vaccinated people entering the UK to self-isolate until they receive a negative result from a PCR test. The move has punctured optimism in the travel sector, with demand having been briefly rekindled when restrictions were eased to allow returning vaccinated travellers to use cheaper lateral flow tests without self-isolation until any positive test results. Heathrow‘s COO, Emma Gilthorpe, said: “We are supportive of measures that protect public health and prevent the spread of Covid. The rapid introduction of restrictions for international travel will nonetheless be a further significant blow for British exporters and those wanting to visit friends and relatives. Keeping the changes under constant review, and a government commitment to the removal of red-list countries as soon as it is safe to do so, will help.”<br/>
