The urgency for getting control over the pandemic has been put into top gear worldwide as COVID-19 vaccination drives being. This brings ray of hope for people who are the most vulnerable to the coronavirus.
In light of this development, Singapore Airlines aims to be the first international airline company to shield every single person under its umbrella with the COVID-19 vaccine. The drive will see 37,000 aviation and maritime personnel associated with the airlines getting vaccinated.
Reinstating travelers trust
This ambitious move will make Singapore Airlines the first in the world to do so. According to Transport Minister Ong Ye Kung who visited the vaccination hub at the Changi Airport – 13,000 members of the staff have already enrolled for the first dose of the vaccine.
If executed as planned, this will have a major impact in reviving the faith of international travelers and hopefully reinstate air travel in the country back to what it was in the pre-COVID-19 era. As rightly stated by Kung “All our 37,000 front-liners, they’re defenders of our borders because the borders are a key vulnerability.”
Roadblocks that need attention
One roadblock that the airline authorities need to address with care is the concern of some airline staff about the risks involved and the efficacy of the vaccines. The logical solution to this problem will be to vaccinate people who are willing initially, and then as others feel confident they can be asked to get the first dose.
Understandably, the first-line aviation workers (around 20,000) will have to get vaccinated first since they are the most vulnerable to contact with people flying in from high-risk nations. This is the rational approach as recent infections have been traced down to two workers in the aviation and maritime sectors.
In another report, Emirates Airlines has also begun providing its employees’ vaccination against the COVID-19. The airlines also wants to vaccinate the front-line workers – cabin crew and pilots – before the other staff.
