Colombia announces the reopening of international flights

MIAMI, Sept. 17, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Colombia is advancing on its strategy for reactivating international tourism. The Colombian Government announced the reopening of the international air connectivity with the inauguration of the first two flights on September 19^th from Cartagena with the arrival of the airline Spirit coming from Fort Lauderdale, and the departure of the Colombian airline Viva Air to Miami. In addition, as of September 21^st, flights will be restored from Mexico and the Dominican Republic among other countries.

As part of the first reactivation phase, the Colombian international airports that will restart its operations gradually in addition to the Rafael Núñez in Cartagena, will be Alfonso Bonilla Aragón in Cali, José María Córdova in Rionegro (which serves Medellín) and El Dorado in Bogotá.

"This is a key step for the country to move towards the reactivation of the tourism industry in a safe, regulated and coordinated way. The recovery of international air connectivity was one of the strategic actions that we established in ProColombia. Since the beginning of the pandemic, we have worked with airlines to coordinate their return and develop promotional plans to boost their sales. With strict protocols that guarantee the safety of travelers, we hope that nearby countries will visit our destinations with confidence and have the best experiences," explained Flavia Santoro, president of ProColombia.

Biosafety protocols for international flights to Colombia

In addition to the previous announcements, the Ministry of Health indicated which are the biosafety protocols for international flights:

Travellers arriving to Colombia must present a negative result of a PCR test for Covid-19 taken no longer than 96 hours before the stipulated time of travel and whoever has symptoms associated with Covid-19 will not be allowed to get on board.

In order to make easier the immigration process, passengers must fill the online form CheckMig (www.migracioncolombia.gov.co) between 1 and 24 hours prior to flight departure and should wear a face mask in airplanes and airports. Within Colombian air terminals, the minimum distance of 2 meters must be respected; on the arrival of a flight, the use of conveyor belts will be maximized; and the access to the airport terminal must be done 3 hours before the international flight.

Some measures on airplanes are: on short flights, toilets should not be used; if the flight is less than two hours, the cabin crew will not perform service on board; on medium and long flights (more than 2 hours) it is recommended to have available several face masks and replace them throughout the flight; and passengers must remain in their assigned seat at all times.

SOURCE ProColombia