Larnaca and Paphos airports will be ready to receive passengers after COVID-19 lockdown is lifted on June 9 having taken all the necessary precautions, Eleni Kaloyirou, CEO of Hermes Airports told CNA.
Kaloyirou said that the airports will take all the necessary measures to safeguard the health of safety of passengers and staff.
She said the entrance to the airport will only be allowed to passengers and staff, a thermal camera will be placed at the arrival gate so anyone who presents coronavirus symptoms or a high fever will be treated by health professionals.
The use of a mask and gloves will be mandatory for everyone while they are inside the airport, while appropriate measures will be taken to maintain social distancing guidelines.
Airports operator Hermes has implemented increased hygiene measures, particularly on surfaces people touch, to prevent virus transmission.
Under its exit lockdown road map, Cyprus is scheduled to open its airports from June 9 to a select band of 13 countries that are considered low risk.
They include Israel, Greece, Germany, Austria, Bulgaria and Malta but the island’s two biggest markets Britain and Russia are not on the approved list.
All those arriving between June 9 -19 will need to provide a health certificate proving they are Covid-19 negative.
From June 20, there will be no need to provide a health certificate from the 13 countries, but another six countries will be added to the list including Switzerland and Poland.
Cyprus says it will update the list of approved countries on a weekly basis based on the scientific data.
There will also be random testing of travellers, free of charge when they arrive on the island.
All passengers, Kaloyirou said, will have to fill in a questionnaire in which they must state whether they have any symptoms, or travelled recently to specific countries.
Referring to airport restaurants and duty-free shops she said that measures applied for shops and restaurants in Cyprus also apply to the airports.
An awareness campaign will also take place about all the measures at the airports to inform people of what is necessary.
Large screens or posters containing informative material will also be posted, Kaloyirou said.
“It is important for people to know what they have to do before they arrive at the airport and that they are prepared.”
https://www.visitcyprus.com/index.php/en/cyprus-covid19-travel-protocol
