Colombia: National air carrier Avianca to resume international flights from September 28 /update 28

Event

The CEO of Colombian national air carrier, Avianca, has announced that the airline will resume international operations in a phased approach beginning on Monday, September 28 amid further easing of coronavirus (COVID-19) restrictions. The move follows the resumption of Avianca's domestic operations that went into effect on September 1. The resumption of international flights will begin with two routes from Medellin's Jose Maria Cordova International Airport (MDE) to Miami and New York on September 28. On October 1, Avianca will resume flights from Bogota's El Dorado International Airport (BOG) to Ecuador, Mexico, Brazil, and the US. From October 15, Avianca will further extend its international routes with flights to Mexico, Guatemala, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, El Salvador, and the Dominican Republic. 

On September 1, Colombian authorities lifted the country's initial quarantine measures after nearly five months of national lockdown. The country is now in a phase of selective quarantine, with local authorities permitted to impose their own restrictions on businesses according to the rate of infection in the area. Airports, bus terminals, restaurants, and gyms reopened in most of Colombia as the nation attempts to restart its economy. The step expanded previous moves that allowed shops, construction sites, shopping malls, and factories to resume operations in June in most of the country's cities.

As of September 27, there have been 806,038 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Colombia with 25,296 associated fatalities. Further international spread of the virus is to be expected in the near term.

Context

The first case of COVID-19 was reported on December 31 and the source of the outbreak has been linked to a wet market in Wuhan (Hubei province, China). Since then, human-to-human transmission of the virus has been confirmed.

Cases of the virus have been confirmed in numerous countries and territories worldwide. On March 11, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the global outbreak a pandemic. Virus-screening and quarantining measures are being implemented at airports worldwide, as well as extensive travel restrictions.

The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, dry cough, and tiredness. Some patients may experience other symptoms such as body pains, nasal congestion, headache, conjunctivitis, sore throat, diarrhea, loss of taste or smell or a rash on skin or discoloration of fingers or toes. These symptoms (in most cases mild) appear gradually. Generally, most patients (around 80 percent) recover from the disease without being hospitalized.

Advice

Measures adopted by local authorities evolve quickly and are usually effective immediately. Depending on the evolution of the outbreak in other countries, authorities are likely to modify, at very short notice, the list of countries whose travelers are subject to border control measures or entry restrictions upon their arrival to the territory in question. It is advised to postpone nonessential travel due to the risk that travelers may be refused entry or be subject to quarantine upon their arrival or during their stay. To reduce the risk of transmission, travelers are advised to abide by the following measures:

• Frequently clean hands by applying an alcohol-based hand rub or washing with soap and water.
• When coughing and sneezing, cover mouth and nose with a flexed elbow or tissue; if used, throw the tissue away immediately and wash hands.
• If experiencing a fever, cough, difficulty breathing, or any other symptoms suggestive of respiratory illness, including pneumonia, call emergency services before going to the doctor or hospital to prevent the potential spread of the disease.