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US easing virus restrictions for foreign flights to America
In a major easing of pandemic travel restrictions, the U.S. said Monday it will allow foreigners to fly into the country this fall if they have vaccination proof and a negative COVID-19 test — changes replacing a hodgepodge of rules that had kept out many non-citizens and irritated allies in Europe and beyond where virus cases are lower.
The changes, to take effect in November, will allow families and others who have been separated by the travel restrictions for 18 months to plan for long-awaited reunifications and allow foreigners with work permits to get back to their jobs in the U.S.
Airlines, business groups and travelers cheered — though they also called the step long overdue.
“It’s a happy day. Big Apple, here I come!” said French entrepreneur Stephane Le Breton, 45, finally able to book a trip to New York City that had been put on hold over the virus restrictions.
The new policy will replace a patchwork of travel bans first instituted by President Donald Trump last year and tightened by President Joe Biden that restrict travel by non-citizens who have in the prior 14 days been in the United Kingdom, European Union, China, India, Iran, Republic of Ireland, Brazil or South Africa.
Read:COVID has killed about as many Americans as the 1918-19 flu
White House COVID-19 coordinator Jeff Zients announced the new policies, which still will require all foreign travelers flying to the U.S. to demonstrate proof of vaccination before boarding, as well as proof of a negative COVID-19 test taken within three days of flight. Biden will also tighten testing rules for unvaccinated American citizens, who will need to be tested within a day before returning to the U.S., as well as after they arrive home.
The tougher rules for unvaccinated Americans come as the White House has moved to impose sweeping vaccination-or-testing requirements affecting as many as 100 million people in an effort to encourage holdouts to get shots.
Fully vaccinated passengers will not be required to quarantine, Zients said.
There will be no immediate change to U.S. land border policies, which restrict much cross-border travel with Mexico and Canada.
The travel bans had become the source of growing geopolitical frustration, particularly among allies in the UK and EU. The easing comes ahead of Biden meeting with some European leaders on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly this week.
“This is based on individuals rather than a country-based approach, so it’s a stronger system,” Zients said.
The EU and UK had previously moved to allow vaccinated U.S. travelers in without quarantines, in an effort to boost business and tourism. But the EU recommended last month that some travel restrictions be reimposed on U.S. travelers to the bloc because of the rampant spread of the delta variant of the coronavirus in America.
Read:Top doctors say not so fast to Biden’s boosters-for-all plan
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will require airlines to collect contact information from international travelers to facilitate tracing, Zients said.
The U.S. will accept full vaccination of travelers with any of the vaccines approved for emergency use by the World Health Organization, the CDC said. The WHO is reviewing Russia’s Sputnik V vaccine but hasn’t yet approved it.
Monday’s announcement was met with applause by the air travel industry, which has lost significant revenue from declines in international travel.
Delta Air Lines spokesman Morgan Durrant said, “Science tells us that vaccinations coupled with testing is the safest way to re-open travel, and we are optimistic this important decision will allow for the continued economic recovery both in the U.S. and abroad and the reunification of families who have been separated for more than 18 months.”
Worldwide, air travel is still down more than half from pre-pandemic levels, and the decline is much sharper for cross-border flying. By July, domestic travel had recovered to 84% of 2019 numbers, but international travel was just 26% of the same month two years ago, according to figures this month from the airline industry’s main global trade group, the International Air Transport Association.
The numbers are similar but not quite as stark for the U.S., where international travel in August was 46% of that in August 2019, according to Airlines for America. Arrivals by non-U.S. citizens were only 36% of the 2019 level.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson tweeted that he was “delighted” by the news. He said: “It’s a fantastic boost for business and trade, and great that family and friends on both sides of the pond can be reunited once again.”
Read:Washington Post editorial on COVID-19 origins distorts facts: Chinese embassy
Airlines hailed the U.S. decision as a lifeline for the struggling industry. Tim Alderslade, chief executive of industry body Airlines U.K. said it was “a major breakthrough.”
Shai Weiss, chief executive of Virgin Atlantic, said it was “a major milestone. ... The U.K. will now be able to strengthen ties with our most important economic partner, the U.S., boosting trade and tourism as well as reuniting friends, families and business colleagues.”
“The travel bans were really behind the times,” said Maka Hutson, counsel specializing in immigration issues at the law firm Akin Gump. She said they were very frustrating to European executives who’d been vaccinated but still couldn’t fly to the United States to conduct business.
The changes also drew praise from business groups, who have been contending with labor shortages as the economy bounces back with unexpected strength from last year’s coronavirus recession. U.S. employers have been posting job openings — a record 10.9 million in July — faster than applicants can fill them.
Myron Brilliant, head of international affairs for the U..S. Chamber of Commerce, said in a statement, “Allowing vaccinated foreign nationals to travel freely to the United States will help foster a robust and durable recovery for the American economy.”
Australia sends jets to fly personnel from Kabul
The latest on Afghanistan:
CANBERRA, Australia — Australia is sending three transport and air-to-air refueling jets with 250 military personnel to repatriate more than 130 Australians and their families from Afghanistan, officials said on Monday.
Australia is also working to evacuate an undisclosed number of refugees, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said in a statement.
The support comes as the U.S. and other nations scramble to evacuate diplomats and Afghan employees and their families from Kabul. The Taliban a day earlier toppled the Western-backed government.
An Airbus A330 airliner modified for aerial refueling would support U.S.-led operations in Afghanistan later this week, Australia’s Defense Department said in a statement. Two C-17A Globemaster heavy transport aircraft would also be sent to the Middle East, the statement said.
Australia shut its Kabul embassy in May and withdrew the last of its troops from Afghanistan in June.
More than 39,000 Australian military personnel have served in Afghanistan since 2001, and 41 died there.
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LISBON, Portugal - Portugal’s defense minister says his country is prepared to take in 243 Afghans, and their families who worked with Portuguese forces stationed in the country.
Defense Minister João Gomes Cravinho said NATO is coordinating the evacuation of the Afghans because Portugal doesn’t have the military capacity to do so.
Read:Taliban seek to project calm as US speeds chaotic evacuation
He told public broadcaster RTP late Sunday he is not aware of any Portuguese citizens living in Afghanistan.
Portugal had a small detachment of fewer than 200 troops stationed at Kabul airport, as part of the NATO mission in the country. The last ones pulled out at the end of May.
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STOCKHOLM — Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde said Monday that 19 embassy employees had been evacuated from Kabul to Doha, Qatar and they’ll eventually flown to Sweden.
Earlier Monday, Norway and Denmark said that the bulk of the embassy staff were out of Afghanistan.
Norway Foreign Minister Ine Eriksen Soereide said for the sake of the Norwegians it was done overnight.
Denmark’s Defense Minister Trine Bramsen told Danish broadcaster DR that while most Danish diplomats had been evacuated, “there are still Danes,” and others in the country still to be flown out.
Challenges include being able to land at Kabul’s chaotic airport, he said. But there’s a struggle, too, to get people to the airport, “a very difficult operation,” Bramsen was quoted as saying.
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LONDON -- British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace says the government is planning to fly out 1,500 more people from Afghanistan over the next two days.
The first flight carrying British nationals has landed in the U.K., he said Monday, as countries scrambled to evacuate their diplomats, Afghan employees and their families from the chaotic airport in Kabul.
Wallace expressed hope that the government will be able to evacuate around 1,000 people a day, including Afghan nationals who have helped British citizens.
He told the BBC that work is under way to “remove any bureaucratic barriers” to make sure people who pass screenings are able to be flown to the U.K.
He said the British government sent more than 600 troops over the weekend to Kabul to help secure the airport and “to effectively process, manage and escort people onto our flights to get them out of Afghanistan.”
Wallace said one of the “biggest regrets” with the speed of the collapse of the Afghan government is that the timetable to remove Afghans and British people from the nation by Aug, 31 has had to be shortened.
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Read:Concerns over US terror threats rising as Taliban hold grow
US-Bangla Airlines enters 8th year
Private carrier US-Bangla Airlines Saturday entered the eighth year of providing services on domestic and international routes.
US-Bangla Airlines started its journey in the aviation industry of Bangladesh on July 17, 2014, by operating flights on Dhaka-Jashore with two Dash8-Q400 aircraft and soon started running flights to all operational airports within Bangladesh.
The airline now runs flights from Dhaka to Chattogram, Cox's Bazar, Sylhet, Jashore, Syedpur, Barishal, and Rajshahi.
US-Bangla started its journey on the international route on May 15, 2016, two years after the launch of the Dhaka-Kathmandu route. It now operates international flights from Dhaka to Kolkata, Chennai, Muscat, Doha, Dubai, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Bangkok and Guangzhou.
The airline plans to operate flights to more international destinations, including Abu Dhabi, Jeddah, Riyadh, Dammam, Colombo, Male and Delhi soon.
US-Bangla owns 14 aircraft, including four 164-seat Boeing 737-800s, 72-seat ATR 72-600s and three 76-seat Dash 8-Q400.
The private carrier now has about 1,500 employees at home and abroad.
Also, US-Bangla is providing several special services such as luggage delivery within 15 minutes of the landing of international flights, a 20% discount for senior citizens, a 10% discount for military officers and golfers.
The airline not only transports passengers but also cargo to various domestic and international destinations.
"In today's world, there is no substitute for brand new aircraft to provide proper service. US-Bangla is constantly adding new aircraft to its fleet to ensure comfortable service for passengers," US-Bangla Managing Director Mohammed Abdullah Al-Mamun said on the occasion of the airline's 7th anniversary."
Domestic flight suspension extended for another week
The ongoing suspension of domestic flights and charter flights of helicopter/general aviation passenger flights has been extended until April 28.
The restriction came after the government decided to extend the strict lockdown to contain the rapid spike of Covid-19 infections and deaths.
Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) issued a circular in this regard on Monday. The order will come into effect from April 21.
Read US-Bangla to operate international flights on four routes from Saturday
All other conditions of the circular under reference will remain unchanged, the circular said.
Flight operations on domestic routes were suspended after the government enforced a lockdown in the first week of April.
Covid-19 situation update
Bangladesh again broke all previous records of Covid-19 deaths registering 112 fatalities in a 24-hour period until Monday morning.
Also read: US-Bangla to operate international flights on four routes from SaturdayThe country saw over 100 deaths for the fourth consecutive day.
The latest fatalities pushed up the death tally to 10,497 with a mortality rate of 1.45 percent, according to a handout from the Directorate General of Health Services.Besides, 4,271 new cases were reported during the period. The infection rate was 17.68 percent, down from 19.06 percent on Sunday.
Also read: Over 200 protest flight cancellation at Dhaka airport
US-Bangla to operate international flights on four routes from Saturday
US-Bangla Airlines, one of the country’s leading private airlines, is set to operate special international flights on four routes after maintaining health protocols from Saturday (April 17).
The flights will be operated on Dhaka-Dubai, Muscat-Doha and Dhaka-Singapore routes with special precautions, said a media release on Friday.
Also read: US-Bangla's fleet expands to 14
It said nine flights will be operated on Dhaka-Dubai route, while seven on Dhaka-Muscat route, four on Dhaka-Doha and one on Dhaka-Singapore route every week.
All the international travellers must have Coronavirus negative certificates which should be collected at least 72 hours before flying as directed by the government.
Besides, all the returnees from foreign countries will have to stay in institutionalised quarantine for 14 days and bear the expenses personally after landing at Dhaka airport.
Read US-Bangla adds two new ATR 72-600s to its fleet
The airlines said other details are available at the sales office of US-Bangla Airlines or travel agencies. Interested travellers can also call over 01777777800-806 or 13605.
On April 11, the Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) said it will suspend all the international flights as the government was going to impose a strict lockdown from April 14 to contain the spread of Covid-19.
Also read: US-Bangla awarded for good service
However, there will be no restriction on the movement of chartered flights, cargo flights and special flights carrying high commissioners of different countries and foreign nationals.
The flight operations on domestic routes have remained suspended since the enforcement of lockdown in the country from April 5.
Read Bangladesh bans entry of passengers from Europe & 12 countries for two weeks
Also, on April 1, the civil aviation regulator suspended the entry of passengers from all European countries, except the UK, and 12 other countries to Bangladesh from April 3.
As the spread of Covid-19 has sparked alarm across the country, the government enforced the nationwide lockdown from April 14 in its bid to stop the spread of the deadly virus.
Read CAAB to suspend international flights from Apr 14
FAA grounds certain planes after engine failure over Denver
The Federal Aviation Administration on Tuesday ordered airlines in the United States to ground planes with the type of engine that blew apart after takeoff from Denver this past weekend until they can be inspected for stress cracks.
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Biman suspends all flights to Saudi Arabia for a week
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Get ready to resume domestic flights: CAAB to airlines
Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) on Saturday directed all the airlines to take preparations for resuming domestic flights from May 8.
“Permission to resume domestic flights from May 8 will be given if the coronavirus situation improves,” CAAB Chairman Air Vice Marshal M Mafidur Rahman told UNB.
“There has been no final decision yet,” he said adding all the airlines and airports have been directed to get ready.
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