As someone with part of their heart in Africa and a fascination with rail and air transport across that magnificent continent, I was very sad to learn that 75 year old Air Namibia is no more. Today, 636 staff lost their jobs, as the Namibian flag carrier was put into liquidation by it’s only shareholder, the country’s government. The staff will be reportedly paid 12 months salary as severance but receive no benefits. Air Namibia had been advertising Valentine’s Day Specials just two days ago. The website is no longer taking bookings. Four A319-100s, two…
COVID19
Tag Archives for COVID19.
Etihad Inoculates 100% of Staff
Etihad (لِلطَّيْرَان) of the United Arab Emirates and Singapore Airlines have been working to get all staff inoculated against COVID-19. Singapore had 90% of its staff registered for a vaccine dose by the end of January, 2021 but Etihad appears to have beaten them to it with its claim that all of its pilots and cabin crew member have been innoculated with a vaccine. To do so, the Etihad Airways Medical Centre became an accredited Covid-19 vaccination clinic in December 2020 and Tony Douglas, Group CEO took the vaccine on 4th January, 2021 and staff…
American Airlines Feel Good Video: You Are Why We fly
AA has a video to tug the heart strings pointing out that the most disruptive event n their 94 year history is upon them: American Airlines: You Are Why We Fly No mention that the only reason they are surviving this storm is because of a massive $5.8 billion government fund injection. Four billion is in the form of grants and the remaining $1.7 billion as a low-interest loan. The airline also plans to apply for a further $4.8 billion loan from The US Treasury Department. American is one of my least favourite airlines in …
Lifemiles -no refund on booking fee for COVID19 cancelled flights
So Avianca airlines has detected that my two trips booked with points are “non operational”. As all of Avianca’s flights are grounded and much of their Star Alliance partners, then the chances of me getting on a plane this month are very low. Can you imagine? I have had no plane flights for a month! Last year I flew seven times a month so it is a shock! The good news is that Lifemiles have offered to refund both the air taxes and the LifeMiles points. That is nice. Appreciated. BUT they will still charge…
Pilot draws “Thanks” in Sky for Medical Workers
Using a Magnus Fusion 212, a Hungarian pilot traced a big thank you to medical staff tackling COVID19. Taking off from Pécs, a city in southwest Hungary, the design took a fair amount of patient flight maneuvering. You can follow the flight path here. It is quite mesmerising. The Magnus Fusion 212 is 22 feet long and has a wingspan of eight metres and can carry two people. Its cruising speed is around 217km/h (135 mph). Its range is around 800km. I visited Pécs, seven years ago. Settled 2000 years ago, it is Hungary’s fifth…
One Million
One Million people have now officially caught the virus (almost one quarter in the USA). Sadly, 51,354 have died. All condolences to families. 37,000 people are currently in a critical condition. The good news is that 210,000 have officially recovered globally. About one in four cases are in the USA. China is officially no longer in the top three nations in terms of case numbers. Thinking of all those bravely working to combat this virus. Be nice to each other. Stay Home. Stay isolated. Stay Safe Virus Information WHO information on the virus CDC: People…
Where are you? I want to hear from you!
I am safe at home and finishing my quarantine in two days. At that time, I will be then be able to remain at home under lock-down! This tantalizing view from my bathroom shows me the (quieter) world outside. I am curious to know where other people are and what they are doing? Are you stuck somewhere and cannot get home because you have no money or access to travel options? Are you in self isolation or quarantine having come back to your home county? Have you had to cancel your travel plans and are…
Can You travel? No. Implications and Advice
I flew home rather hurriedly last week. On March 15th I said people should not travel anymore and return home. A view I got some criticism for. C’est la vie. I decided to cut short my US visit, cancelled my UK business meetings and long looked forward to weekend hiking trip and hightailed it home. The world then changed very quickly in a week. On March 15, Canada warned its citizens not to travel and asked them to return to Canada. The EU introduced its blanket travel ban on March 17. The UK also gave…
Travel just got interesting- Impacts & Info for a Pandemic.
The WHO has finally called the COVID19 virus situation a pandemic. Before now, the UN’s health agency described it as an epidemic. Calling it a pandemic, states that it has officially spread around the world and reflects WHO’s concern at what it calls the “alarming levels of the coronavirus spread, severity and inaction”. The reaction has been swift. India invoked section 2 of its Epidemic Diseases Act to deal with #Coronavirus crisis by sealing its borders from Friday 13 March until 15 April. All visas (except for official ones) are suspended. President Donald Trump said…
CoronaVirus- Health Info Country by Country
The Coronavirus COVID-19 is here to stay for a while and so too are the rumours, myths and truths which seem to be spreading faster than the virus. One way to monitor the situation is to check with government websites and the WHO (World Health Organisation site). Click below on the country name to access information material published by that country’s health authority. This map shows where the cases are. Check out also my embassy information page and my page on What to do to prepare for a potential disaster while travelling. Also see my…
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