Passenger on Chennai-Coimbatore Indigo Flight Tests COVID-19 +ve

The infected person is quarantined in Coimbatore and the crew on the flight has been quarantined for 14 days.

Indigo Airlines’ ground staff stand next to an aircraft. Image used for representational purposes.

(Photo: Reuters)

A passenger travelling on the Chennai-Coimbatore Indigo flight tested positive for COVID-19 on the first day of resumption of domestic flight operations on Monday, 25 May, the airlines said in a statement.

The infected person is quarantined in Coimbatore and the operating crew on the flight has been quarantined for 14 days.

“We received confirmation from the Coimbatore airport doctor that a passenger who travelled on 6E-381 from Chennai to Coimbatore on 25 May evening, has tested positive for COVID-19. He is currently quarantined at ESI state medical facility at Coimbatore. He was seated on-board the aircraft with all precautionary measures including face mask, face shield and gloves, as were the other passengers. Additionally, no one else was seated in his vicinity, significantly reducing the possibility of transmission,” the airlines said in a statement.

“All our aircraft are regularly sanitized as a standard operating procedure, and the aircraft operating this flight was also immediately disinfected as per protocol. The operating crew has been grounded for 14 days and we are in the process of notifying other passengers as per the government guidelines, to ensure safety of our passengers and staff,” the airlines added.

The case comes as flight operations in the country resumed on Monday after two-months of complete nationwide lockdown to tackle the coronavirus pandemic.

A total of 532 domestic flights were operated which ferried 39,231 passengers across the country. However, around 630 flights were cancelled as state after state had came out with new norms for flight operations, thereby, distorting their network planning.