Predictions of when international flights may resume/bans lifted

[flyer89]

As I’ve mentioned before, daily flights on Qatar from europe to Australia, none cancelled.

I really wish they would so I could get a refund! They are playing games too, emails about once a week with slight time changes of the flights as if to say "we have your money and we aren't giving it back". And to think I held out hope for so long that I'd be traveling to Europe in October. Clear case of COVID brain.

 

[MEL_Traveller]

What about coughet or Bangkok? Then read the Australian Ambassador's post from yesterday.

Or maybe you'd like to laze on a beach in Langkawi or Kota Kinabalu? Well check out the information being provided to those trying to get home from Malaysia.

Now go back and read some of the comments of the travellers that are stuck that are being posted in response. These are not necessarily "extreme examples". As an example, some of the people who have been stuck in Malaysia have been caught because of domestic restrictions that have been implemented at short notice (think the equivalent of state border closures with Victoria), meaning they can't get to KL, yet only flights from KL are departing to Australia.

So the Aussie ambassador has posted a couple of flight options from Thailand in that post:

Flights to Australia​

If you wish to return to Australia, please look for commercial options. Qatar Airways and Cathay Pacific (Online Flight Booking | Airfare | Australia - Cathay Pacific) are flying to Australia. Qatar Airways are offering a 10% discount on one-way tickets to Australia, please use the promo code TRAVELHOME via their website, www.qatarairways.com/getyouhome.​

The Embassy continues to look for other commercial flight options for travel to Australia. Details of any confirmed travel options will be provided on our Facebook page.​

My own research shows Singapore airlines flying from Bangkok via Singapore to Australia.

Select other Asian destinations including Vietnam, Japan, Malaysia are all being serviced by SQ: Covid-19: Singapore Airlines and SilkAir Flight Schedules in July and August 2020

So yeah - you could sit around and wait for an ambassador to find flights, or you could look at a map and find an airline with a connection to get you home.

I appreciate there are some extreme examples, like in South America, and you have also highlighted malaysia, where people *can't* get home from some smaller cities - and acknowledged those situations in my earlier post.

 

[dajop]

My own research shows Singapore airlines flying from Bangkok via Singapore to Australia.

Select other Asian destinations including Vietnam, Japan, Malaysia are all being serviced by SQ: Covid-19: Singapore Airlines and SilkAir Flight Schedules in July and August 2020

You are looking at the flight schedule table. That doesn't mean they are allowed to carry passengers through to Australia via Singapore. That is restricted and the list available here. Currently of the four countries of origin you mention, SQ are only allowed to carry passengers originating in Japan through to other destinations on their network. For flights from Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia they can only carry passengers ending their journey in Singapore, not connecting to elsewhere.

 

[Gremlin]

So the Aussie ambassador has posted a couple of flight options from Thailand in that post:

Flights to Australia​

If you wish to return to Australia, please look for commercial options. Qatar Airways and Cathay Pacific (Online Flight Booking | Airfare | Australia - Cathay Pacific) are flying to Australia. Qatar Airways are offering a 10% discount on one-way tickets to Australia, please use the promo code TRAVELHOME via their website, www.qatarairways.com/getyouhome.​

The Embassy continues to look for other commercial flight options for travel to Australia. Details of any confirmed travel options will be provided on our Facebook page.​

My own research shows Singapore airlines flying from Bangkok via Singapore to Australia.

Select other Asian destinations including Vietnam, Japan, Malaysia are all being serviced by SQ: Covid-19: Singapore Airlines and SilkAir Flight Schedules in July and August 2020

So yeah - you could sit around and wait for an ambassador to find flights, or you could look at a map and find an airline with a connection to get you home.

I appreciate there are some extreme examples, like in South America, and you have also highlighted malaysia, where people *can't* get home from some smaller cities - and acknowledged those situations in my earlier post.

Yep. I think you've just highlighted the problem...

So SQ are currently flying BKK to SIN and SIN to Australia. However, as per your own link, transit is not allowed on this flight combination. Nor are you permitted to enter Singapore.

 

[p--and--t]

But has travel ever been risk free?
Certainly when I have travelled to the USA in spring, March/April ,I am aware that we are very much at risk from influenza as our vaccinations were 10,11 months previously and almost certainly no longer effective.As well there probably has been a new strain and so we are certainly at risk.
And we travelled around Asia at the height of the SARs pandemic in 2003.

The number of Australians who die overseas each year is well over 1000.In 2016.17 the number was 1653.

New figures show 49 Australians murdered overseas in 2016/17

Australians are avid travellers — nearly 9 million take overseas trips each year — but the latest figures from the Department of Foreign Affairs show an increasing number never make it home.

www.abc.net.au

A third of those who died OS was in just 4 countries in SE Asia-Thailand,Phillipines,Indonesia and Vietnam.

The overseas spot where Aussies keep dying

EVERYONE knows that certain travel destinations can be riskier than others, but there is one particular overseas spot where Australians are dying at an alarming rate.

www.news.com.au

For a more extensive breakdown.

Consular State of Play 2016–17

www.dfat.gov.au

So the difference is that people were basically unaware of the risks they take travelling.Sadly there will still be many unaware of the risks.
Possibly in 4-5 years travel I am sure will be back to pre covid levels as with the effort and number under consideration a vaccine is more likely than not and effective treatment at least by monoclonal abs is quite likely.
Add to that the world has had 2 previous novel corona virus pandemics both of which naturally died out.

Fascinating how many and varied we all are and different drivers and thoughts. Makes the world a much more interesting place to live in.

Not being in the medical field or being in a health vulnerable group (other than age), catching the flu in the US has never crossed my mind before. The reason I have been hesitant about visiting the US a few times is info like this....

Charts and Maps | Gun Violence Archive

www.gunviolencearchive.org

 

[dajop]

The reason I have been hesitant about visiting the US a few times is info like this....

Charts and Maps | Gun Violence Archive

www.gunviolencearchive.org

Of course this is not the only risk, US road deaths (~38,800) were almost the same as US gun violence deaths in 2019. By way of comparison, adjusted for population that's the equivalent of ~3000 lives lost on the road in Australia (our figure for 2019 was 1182), so almost 3x risk of dying in a collision on the road as well.

So all else being equal travelling to US increases the chance of road related death x3 and gun violence x 15! Of course, tourists are probably less exposed to the various risk factors than many residents.

 

[tgh]

..and yet I find the US a perfectly pleasant place to drive.. Ymmv of course

 

[CaptJCool]

BTW Today’s last QF 747 flight to USA does not qualify as “resumption of international flights”

For everyone who picked JASON it’s likely premature and an fully fledged international flight schedule looks to be probably 12 months away, other than New Zealand which given Victoria is probably off the cards til ealry next year

 

[MEL_Traveller]

You are looking at the flight schedule table. That doesn't mean they are allowed to carry passengers through to Australia via Singapore. That is restricted and the list available here. Currently of the four countries of origin you mention, SQ are only allowed to carry passengers originating in Japan through to other destinations on their network. For flights from Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia they can only carry passengers ending their journey in Singapore, not connecting to elsewhere.

Good point!

 

[Hvr]

So all else being equal travelling to US increases the chance of road related death x3

If you're worried about the US road related death rate don't even think about going to Thailand.

Why are Thailand’s roads among the deadliest in the world?

After years of promises from authorities to improve them, the country’s roads remain deathtraps – especially for the poor

www.independent.co.uk

 

[drron]

Well Fiji is wanting to open a travel bubble with New zealand.

Stuff

www.stuff.co.nz

 

[PineappleSkip]

I'd love other members to share their opinions with a simple, number reply.

0.0001
As soon a 'World' has a curve that looks like Australia's, then we can expect to see restrictions lifted. Could be some way off.

Pre covid travel insurance wasn’t mandatory as a requirement to leave Australia.

Seen reports of it being a precondition of approval to depart.

cheersskip

 

[CityRail]

Australia left in the dark as manufacturers race to make Oxford COVID-19 vaccine

Pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca says it is expanding global supply chains to produce Oxford's candidate if successful, but Australia may have to rely on imports.

www.smh.com.au

I don't understand why Australia has yet to sign any contract to ensure supply of the Oxford vaccine, when it is the best hope that it will be successful and ensure we can be one of the first countries to reopen our borders.

I think AZD1222 should also conduct a Phase 3 trial in Melbourne to test whether the vaccine is effective.

 

[Pushka]

Australia left in the dark as manufacturers race to make Oxford COVID-19 vaccine

Pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca says it is expanding global supply chains to produce Oxford's candidate if successful, but Australia may have to rely on imports.

www.smh.com.au

I don't understand why Australia has yet to sign any contract to ensure supply of the Oxford vaccine, when it is the best hope that it will be successful and ensure we can be one of the first countries to reopen our borders.

I think AZD1222 should also conduct a Phase 3 trial in Melbourne to test whether the vaccine is effective.

Just because we haven’t read about it - ie - the media doesn’t know - doesn’t mean that discussions aren’t being had.

 

[VPS]

Australia left in the dark as manufacturers race to make Oxford COVID-19 vaccine

Pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca says it is expanding global supply chains to produce Oxford's candidate if successful, but Australia may have to rely on imports.

www.smh.com.au

I don't understand why Australia has yet to sign any contract to ensure supply of the Oxford vaccine, when it is the best hope that it will be successful and ensure we can be one of the first countries to reopen our borders.

I think AZD1222 should also conduct a Phase 3 trial in Melbourne to test whether the vaccine is effective.

I suspect there may be other vaccine trials that are doing well but they choose not to make a hoohaa about them. Railing against people isn't going to make the vaccine happen any sooner or later. I still think a suitable vaccine distributed around the world is still more than 9 months away and I think you probably need to make that your mindset as well

 

[dajop]

I suspect there may be other vaccine trials that are doing well but they choose not to make a hoohaa about them. Railing against people isn't going to make the vaccine happen any sooner or later. I still think a suitable vaccine distributed around the world is still more than 9 months away and I think you probably need to make that your mindset as well

It must be Wednesday. These stories about vaccines, seem to appear on a regular basis. Nothing more than clickbait, IMHO.

 

[drron]

And you don't get the full story.Here is a report of the Oxford vaccine and a Chinese vaccine.
In this the Oxford vaccine just say that the side effects were not severe but they did admit they were significantly higher than the control meningitis vaccine.In fact I have posted a link to the journal article and after the second dose of the Covid vaccine nearly everyone had side effects even though prophylactic paracetamol was given.
In the Chinese section they ad mitted side effects were over 70%.What is not said here is that they also were given prophylactic paracetamol.

Experimental COVID-19 vaccines yield promising data in early studies

Preliminary findings from a Phase I/II trial published in The Lancet showed that the candidate ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine demonstrated an acceptable safety profile, and homologous-boosting increased antibody responses."A single dose elicited both humoral and cellular responses against SARS-CoV-2...

dgalerts.docguide.com

https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(20)31604-4/fulltext

Now having 70% + patients getting sise effects of fever,muscle aches and fatique despite prophylactic paracetamol is much higher than with the flu vaccine where really the only common side effect is soreness at the injection site.
.

https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJM199510053331401

In fact the side effects apart from the arm soreness were basically no different to those getting a harmless placebo injection.

 

[Pushka]

I just heard January 1st!

 

[dajop]

I just heard January 1st!

You sure it wasn't April 1st

 

[I love to travel]

In a press interview yesterday AJ said mid next year.