NOT SO EASY
As easyJet plans to restart flights with coronavirus safety measures we ask would YOU feel safe enough to fly in June?
IF you were told you could fly again next month, would you? That’s when easyJet plans to resume flights.
From June 15, starting with a small number of mainly domestic routes, flights will operate from ten British and 12 European airports in France, Switzerland, Portugal and Spain.
⚠️ Read our coronavirus live blog for the latest news & updates
7
Gatwick to Nice, where entry for tourists is still banned, will be the only international UK route. EasyJet hopes its new safety measures will be enough to convince us to take to the skies when lockdown allows.
Jacob Lewis put the moves to two people with different views on flying in June.
YES
Paul Charles, 49, CEO at The PC Agency, London
7
I WILL be flying again as soon as I can, if possible in June. Clearly there will be measures in place that will make it an unusual experience and I think we all have to realise now that everything is going to be different.
That will include our flying experience. If that means wearing a mask on a flight or even being tested at the airport, then that’s the way it will be.
I think people will be flying again by June, as some who work form home, including myself, will be happy enough to quarantine on our return. There will be plenty of people who want to get away to experience another culture or see family and friends.
The onus is on the airport and us as travellers to follow the rules. Airports should be ensuring that at check-in there are temperature checks and, in future, Covid-19 testing.
7
Travellers need to ensure they are sensible and follow social distancing measures.
Aircraft are not built for social distancing, so it’s up to airports and us to ensure we are socially distancing the right way.
Of course it’s hard, on an aircraft, not to go to the loo, or to wear a mask. But we will just have to accept that until better days arrive.
The airline industry has been through shocks before, and we just have to get used to temporarily having to do things a little differently if we want a holiday.
These are extraordinary times and there will be extraordinarily cheap prices as a result. You can fly easyJet from Gatwick to Nice in the middle of July for £73 return. Or with BA from £75 return from London to Malaga.
If you’re prepared to quarantine on your return, there is a great opportunity to bag some fantastic deals. Aircraft are not going to be completely full, so it’s potentially one of the few opportunities in life to grab seat 1A on easyJet. I’ll be making the most of it.
7
NO
Jane Weiss, 70, owner of just-soaps.com, Leicester
7
IF you said to me now, we’ll give you two free tickets with easyJet for anywhere you want to go, and we’ll pay for a hotel while you’re out there and the insurance, we still wouldn’t go.
Last year my husband Jan and I downsized our house because we wanted to do lots of travelling, and we bought five holidays.
The first, to Majorca in March, was cancelled and we won’t be going on any of the others, not least because we can’t get health insurance.
Our annual insurance policy with Saga has come up for renewal and they’ll no longer cover anyone for Covid-19. Until there’s a vaccine it’s just not worth the risk or the hassle, we wouldn’t enjoy the holiday worrying about it.
7
If we’re going to be ill or going to be in lockdown, I’d rather be at home than in a five-star hotel anywhere in the world.
The ‘new normal’ won’t be like it was with people just jumping on a plane and going away for the weekend – I don’t think I’ll see that again in my lifetime.
But we’re fortunate, we’re older. We’ve had fantastic holidays over the years, I feel for younger families that are working to save hard and really look forward to their holidays.
I can’t see how easyJet’s plans would make any difference whatsoever. What if you need to go to the toilet on the flight?
7
MOST READ IN TRAVEL
Pilots can’t socially distance in a cockpit and they can’t wear face masks because they have to talk to air traffic control, often in a different language while being coherent and concise.
It’s not just on the flight, it’s the whole shebang of it. It’s all very well, airlines talking about social distancing but at the airport that’s almost impossible.
How on earth are they going to manage security and queuing with social distancing?
CORONAVIRUS CRISIS - STAY IN THE KNOW
Don't miss the latest news and figures - and essential advice for you and your family.
To receive The Sun's Coronavirus newsletter in your inbox every tea time, .
To follow us on Facebook, simply .
Get Britain's best-selling newspaper delivered to your smartphone or tablet each day - .
- GOT a story? RING The Sun on 0207 782 4104 or WHATSAPP on 07423720250 or EMAIL [email protected]
Topics