Daily Times

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has urged Asia Pacific states to further ease border measures to accelerate the region’s recovery from Covid-19.

IATA Director General Willie Walsh urged this in his keynote address at the Changi Aviation Summit, said a statement issued on Tuesday. He said that Asia Pacific is playing catch-up on restarting travel after Covid-19, but there is growing momentum with governments lifting many travel restrictions.

The demand for people to travel is clear. As soon as measures are relaxed there is an immediate positive reaction from travellers. “So, it is critical that all stakeholders, including governments, are well-prepared for the restart. We cannot delay. Jobs are at stake and people want to travel,” he added. He said the Asia Pacific region’s international passenger demand for March reached 17 percent of pre-Covid levels, after having hovered at below 10 percent for most of the last two years. “This is far below the global trend where markets have recovered to 60pc of pre-crisis levels. The lag is because of government restrictions. The sooner they are lifted, the sooner we will see a recovery in the region’s travel and tourism sector, and all the economic benefits that will bring,” said Walsh.

Walsh urged Asia-Pacific governments to continue easing measures and bring normalcy to air travel by: removing all restrictions for vaccinated travellers; removing quarantine and Covid-19 testing for unvaccinated travellers where there are high levels of population immunity, which is the case in most parts of Asia; and lifting the mask mandate for air travel when it is no longer required in other indoor environments and public transport.

“Supporting and more importantly accelerating the recovery will need a whole industry and government approach. Airlines are bringing back the flights. Airports need to be able to handle the demand. And governments need to be able to process security clearances and other documentation for key personnel efficiently,” said Walsh.

Walsh also called on Asia Pacific governments to support the industry’s sustainability efforts. He said the airlines have committed to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. “A key to our success will be governments sharing the same vision. There are high expectations for governments to agree to a long-term goal at the ICAO Assembly later this year. Achieving net zero requires everyone to shoulder their responsibility,” added Walsh. He acknowledged that there have been positive developments in Asia Pacific in this regard.