Coronavirus (COVID-19) Respiratory illness - Effect on Travel

[Pushka]

It was reported Indo doesn't have facilities to test so not capable to rule someone as confirmed. As at a couple days ago their airports didn't (and maybe still don't?) have the capability to take passengers temperatures. Suspect early days to make any conclusions about Indo. They didn’t have the corona virus testing kits until maybe recently?

I’d be surprised if they aren’t measuring temperatures through machinery. We went through scanners in DPS at the time of the Swine Flu epidemic.

 

[PineappleSkip]

Maybe it's absent from some smaller nations but Indonesia and the two continents, Africa especially, must be pretty likely to have some sufferers.

Today’s Africa News

As at February 3, three African countries reported that they were investigation (sic) suspected cases of coronavirus. Kenya, Ethiopia and Botswana reported three, four, five cases respectively.

I read elsewhere (don’t quote me) that only South Africa can do the testing. Some countries (e.g. Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Kenya) have previously reported testing suspects but come up with negative results. Botswana has said nothing about its first case, which was a few days ago.

cheers skip

 

[p--and--t]

On Monday, Batik Air has flown 270 Indonesian nationals from Wuhan back to Indo. On arrival the gvmt sprayed them with disinfectant gave them medical checks and loaded them onto military planes for transfer to Natura Island for quarantine for 14 days.
Sounds familiar.
Difference being the crew of the plane are being quarantined as well.

 

[juddles]

Can anyone, without just guessing, tell how good the numbers are on the infected? i ask this due to the Zika virus fiasco, where many thousands were "diagnosed" before a test for it was even invented... (Essentially the medicos realized that it was a source of cash)

I am hoping that this new virus is much more professionally looked at and diagnosed.

 

[Quickstatus]

There will still be political influences. No medical/healthcare service is beyond political influence/interference.

 

[Melburnian1]

AFFer pauly7 stated that he had to get permission to fly to BNE (extraordinary!)

Are contributors who work for either private sector or government finding their entitities imposing either bans or 'the need for more justification' for international and/or domestic trips or is it still a case of 'as previously?'

 

[Pushka]

AFFer pauly7 stated that he had to get permission to fly to BNE (extraordinary!)

Are contributors who work for either private sector or government finding their entitities imposing either bans or 'the need for more justification' for international and/or domestic trips or is it still a case of 'as previously?'

My understandings are from within a couple of large institutions in Victoria and SA that the coronavirus is impacting significantly on their scheduling but domestic travel is ongoing and no issues at all. Because of the HK unrest situation of a few months ago, they’d pretty much stopped the HK route until further notice anyway so China travel had already been slowed significantly. No sign at all of any domestic issues. As for us working with them - no fly domestic then no work. And clients are fine with domestic travel anyway.

 

[Lynda2475]

SMH reports:

Australia will send dozens of residents trapped by China's coronavirus epidemic to New Zealand after co-ordinating an evacuation with the Kiwi government.

The deal will see Australian residents join 70 New Zealanders on an Air New Zealand flight on Tuesday. They will then be quarantined on a military base outside Auckland or transferred to Christmas Island, where the first batch of Australian evacuees from the Chinese city of Wuhan landed overnight.

 

[Dr Ralph]

I have today changed my award flights to the US that were with China Eastern. The flights weren't until June. But I'm not prepared to take the risk and wait to see what will happen, even though I was only transiting in China for 4 hours.

So the result will be the penalty for cancelling the original award booking and the cost of the replacement flights. I could only secure F seats to the US, and these were for a month later than I originally planned to travel.

The cost to me will be 200,000+ QFF points to change from J to F, the increased taxes and the penalty for cancelling the original booking.

It wasn't an easy decision. The fact that I had the points, without needing to wait for the refund for the cancelled flights helped. As did the ease of mind. I, obviously, don't know what will happen in China but I suspect it will get worse before it gets better and I can't risk that.

Act now and change to something I could live with and had some choice about or wait and potentially be royally fu%%ed by Qantas and China Eastern. I know that neither Qantas nor China Eastern will be proactive about dealing with this so in the end the decision was clear.

 

[Oubline]

I have today changed my award flights to the US that were with China Eastern. The flights weren't until June. But I'm not prepared to take the risk and wait to see what will happen, even though I was only transiting in China for 4 hours.

So the result will be the penalty for cancelling the original award booking and the cost of the replacement flights. I could only secure F seats to the US, and these were for a month later than I originally planned to travel.

So the cost to me will be 200,000+ points to change from F to J, the increased taxes and the penalty for cancelling the original booking.

A proactive approach that will give you peace of mind, I’m sure! Would you have made the same decision if you were transiting HK?

 

[Happy Dude]

A proactive approach that will give you peace of mind, I’m sure! Would you have made the same decision if you were transiting HK?

Several already have. Not just transitting but I was due to fly SQ J/F next week for a week in HKG. I've dropped the SIN-HKG and HKG-SIN flights (something that should have been much easier than it was) and SQ said they don't/can't/won't refund the points/taxes. Seems coughty but as @Dr Ralph shows, peace of mind can be exxy.

 

[Dr Ralph]

A proactive approach that will give you peace of mind, I’m sure! Would you have made the same decision if you were transiting HK?

Difficult to be sure, but I would have been happier with HK.

Mrs Dr Ralph would not have accepted HK, primarily because the alternative is Qantas F!

In the end I'm rather relieved that I made the change proactively. I can now plan the entire trip with confidence.

 

[dajop]

Several already have. Not just transitting but I was due to fly SQ J/F next week for a week in HKG. I've dropped the SIN-HKG and HKG-SIN flights (something that should have been much easier than it was) and SQ said they don't/can't/won't refund the points/taxes. Seems coughty but as

If you made the change last week, IIRC they only were providing waivers to Mainland China. This has now been extended to Hong Kong and Macau, which should mean refund of taxes and a small number of points (IIRC, it's about 6,000 pts on return J ticket).

 

[Happy Dude]

If you made the change last week, IIRC they only were providing waivers to Mainland China. This has now been extended to Hong Kong and Macau, which should mean refund of taxes and a small number of points (IIRC, it's about 6,000 pts on return J ticket).

Thanks @dajop, I will be following up the points/taxes. I only made the changes yesterday. We'd been keeping abreast and it was the inclusion of Hong Kong and Macau by SQ in their waiver that essentially forced us to make the change. We're holding our breath that travel bans like the cruise lines are enforcing with HKG don't become widespread. As pointed out above, HKG is not as affected as some other ports. A ban on travellers who've transitted SIN would be disastrous for my plans.

 

[drron]

So sad yet some still admire the Chinese Government.

Left at home for six days: disabled Chinese boy dies after carer dad and brother are quarantined for coronavirus checks

A disabled teenager in rural central China died after he was left at home for six days without care while his relatives were quarantined on suspicion of having the Wuhan coronavirus, Beijing Youth Daily reported on Thursday.The 17-year-old, named Yan Cheng, had cerebral palsy, a severe motor...

sg.news.yahoo.com

 

[Pushka]

The SA couple who tested positive and apparently now we are told, developed a fever on the plane before arriving, attended an auction in Adelaide and just now the RE Agency has had to close in quarantine. Yet when the news broke of this couple the Health Dept reassured everyone that they had self isolated and would not have spread it. But when they announced that they hadn’t even interviewed them. And they wonder why we are sceptical of things they say.

 

[Sabot]

The SA couple who tested positive and apparently now we are told, developed a fever on the plane before arriving, attended an auction in Adelaide and just now the RE Agency has had to close in quarantine. Yet when the news broke of this couple the Health Dept reassured everyone that they had self isolated and would not have spread it. But when they announced that they hadn’t even interviewed them. And they wonder why we are sceptical of things they say.

Not sure what's worse, the CCP intentionally censoring information or our state governments bungling our "world class preparedness and response" to this issue.

 

[Lynda2475]

I have a 3 hour transit in HKG in June on route to CPH (via DXB), and I havent been able to find any other reward availabity to go via SIN or PER-LHR on my dates (except horrible Y routing). Because of a tour I cant move travel dates, guess my back-up will need to be a paid seat SYD-PER-LHR-CPH or SYD-JFK-CPH or SYD-DXB if I want to avoid asia,

 

[Pushka]

I have a 3 hour transit in HKG in June on route to CPH (via DXB), and I havent been able to find any other reward availabity to go via SIN or PER-LHR on my dates (except horrible Y routing). Because of a tour I cant move travel dates, guess my back-up will need to be a paid seat SYD-PER-LHR-CPH or SYD-JFK-CPH or SYD-DXB if I want to avoid asia,

I’d also check with your tour that a transit through HK doesn’t exclude you as well.

 

[Must...Fly!]

I have an overnight transit scheduled in HK from PVG in April. Fairly certain I'll be knocking Shanghai out of the itinerary and trying to arrange an alternative flight to HKG from Japan. But removing the transit in HKG all together is going to be a challenge.

Also wondering if I want to do the trip at all, really. Shame it may come to that.