Now there is the nose swab at flight level: The Israeli airline El Al tests passengers on board. When entering Israel, you have to be tested for Corona after arriving at the airport. Until the result is available, all those entering the country go into quarantine. This often causes chaos at the airport.
When people arrive, the test sites at the airport are overrun. On the one hand, this leads to long queues and waiting times. The gathering of people, which favors the transmission of Corona, is even more problematic.
Corona test not included in the flight ticket
That is why the airline El Al uses unconventional means. El Al would like to test their passengers on the plane. The first test run was on a flight on Friday from New York JFK to Tel Aviv, like the platform “Business Insider” reports. “It is clear that the virus will stay here in whatever form – we must not put life on hold,” says El Al boss Avigal Soreq.
Around 280 travelers were tested for Corona on board. The samples were transported in special cool boxes and evaluated in Tel Aviv. But the test is not free! With the flight ticket there is a surcharge of a good 20 euros for the test above the clouds.
Many obstacles to entry
Currently, the entry requirements for Israel are tough. In general, there is a strict entry ban for foreign passengers. This means that only locals can enter. The exception applies to foreign passengers if they can prove their center of life in Israel.
But that’s not all: when you take the flight, you need a negative PCR test result. In addition, you will be tested again on arrival or on the plane and you have to bridge the waiting time for the result in quarantine – even with vaccinated and convalescent people.