Brussels Airlines is getting ready to welcome passengers and staff again as from 15 June. In addition to retraining its cockpit and cabin crew, the airline says it has reviewed its services and processes and has taken the necessary measures to protect the health of its customers and staff throughout their travel journey, based on recommendations by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and Belgian health authorities.
On June 15, the first nine flights of Brussels Airlines will take off from Brussels Airport. In order to make the journey as safe as possible for travelers and personnel, the airline has taken several hygiene measures while still allowing to travel in all comfort.
A first important measure is that the airline reminds passengers via several communications not to come to the airport when having symptoms or feeling ill. Flexible rebooking options remain in place should travel plans change at the last-minute. Furthermore, Brussels Airport will perform temperature checks before allowing passengers to enter the terminal. At the airport check-in and sales desks, plexiglass screens have been installed to protect check-in agents as well as passengers. Note: Transactions will be limited to electronic payment.
Social distance courtesy lines will remind travelers to keep at a safe distance. Additional cleaning procedure, hand sanitizers and hygiene reminders are put in place by the airport. Passengers on European flights are encouraged to check their hand luggage (for free) to avoid queuing on board to find space in the overhead bins.
From the moment they enter the airport, all passengers from the age of six years old are required to wear a mask that covers nose and mouth. The mask must be kept on during the entire flight, as social distance on board cannot be guaranteed.
Boarding and deboarding will be phased to avoid queues and passengers are requested to scan their own boarding pass to avoid physical contact. The cabin crew will offer to apply hand sanitizer to all passengers when boarding the aircraft, as well as hand out a disinfectant wipe. The aircraft disinfection process has been reinforced and a stronger detergent will be used to make sure all surfaces are clean. The HEPA (high-efficiency particulate air) filters on board create a downward stream of continuously cleaned air, which takes away a reported 99.9 percent of particles in the air.
During the flight, the airline will reduce physical contact between passengers and crew as much as possible. Therefore, the meal and drink service on European flights will not be available and on intercontinental flights, the duty-free service will be available for electronic payments only.
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