Who is still flying into the UK?

[speedtalker]

I'm not being goadie, I just don't understand it. I don't know anyone going on holiday. Who was in the massive queues at Heathrow? It can't be holiday makers, surely. It is people migrating? Travelling with work? Students?
I just can't get round the idea that people are flying around the world just now, although I do see the occasional plane in the sky, but leaders keep talk about quarantining foreign arrivals.

*their

Are they actually checking why people are leaving the country? I think Pritti Patel said they were going to, but does anyone actually get sent back home? Surely if people are still coming and going without a good reason it’s just going to keep spreading.

Are they actually checking why people are leaving the country? I think Pritti Patel said they were going to, but does anyone actually get sent back home?

I think 100% checking of those leaving the UK, possibly with a police officer in attendance or available hasn't actually started yet, that idea was announced around the same time as the hotel quarantine plan, and even that's a few weeks down the road.

Only people I know of who have been "turned round" by airline staff when trying to leave the UK have been short of documentation/test results required by the destination country.

My DH just flew back from Dubai overnight. He had to go via Bahrain as direct passenger flights are cancelled.
They can still tell where you originally boarded. If they can track your luggage all the way through its not beyond the wit of man to figure out where the actual person commenced their journey.

This is the sum total of flights out of T5 today. Its a ghost town.

They can still tell where you originally boarded. If they can track your luggage all the way through its not beyond the wit of man to figure out where the actual person commenced their journey.

FWIW probably not if use two separate carriers and independent bookings for the two sectors.

In that case from a ticket/admin/luggage POV the flights are separate entities and you are only handled one sector at a time and bags may not be tagged through from port of origin to port of destination.

[quote scubadub]@peak2021 some People travelling for work don't have time to quarantine. [/quote]
Why?

Companies should build this into scheduling. Oil rig crew, merchant navy are months on months off so no problem there. Flight crew could be isolated in other countries when there so they are effectively not in the other country.

And you shouldn’t be allowed to fly to do things you’re not allowed to do within the UK. We can't see our families, why are people allowed to fly out to see theirs? People should wfh unless essentially be in, so international work should be no different.

Engineers etc working in Dubai for example should be living there (for work) and therefore shouldn’t be flying backwards and forwards.

*Flight crew could be isolated in other countries when there so they are effectively not in the other country.

FYI it's almost impossible for flight or cabin crew to isolate to UK standards when downroute - to run a safe operation they have to "face to face", consult with and talk to local engineers, traffic managers, station staff etc..)....

Engineers etc working in Dubai for example should be living there (for work) and therefore shouldn’t be flying backwards and forwards.

DH doesn't just work in Dubai though, he's travelling to various locations, it happened to be Dubai this time. So no he needs to return home to the UK until the next job.

DH doesn't just work in Dubai though, he's travelling to various locations, it happened to be Dubai this time. So no he needs to return home to the UK until the next job.

Indeed..I know there's a lot of people with that sort of working pattern and it's done for good reason, not because it's fun.

As far as airline crew go FWIW I'll offer a opinion having "lived" the process - I experienced supposed "isolation abroad" first hand overseas early on in the pandemic and the process was full of obvious, inevitable holes mentioned upthread but nevertheless wasn't pleasant but I'm sure played well politically with the locals.

I only know of one country that has even attempted to isolate crews in the manner I suspect some would like and it is such a genuinely unpleasant (and sometimes degrading experience), so much so that many airlines have stopped "slipping" (resting) crews in that particular country, or have rejigged routes with shuttle sectors to allow crew to rest elsewhere in an adjacent land.

If people want the much needed PPE/drugs etc brought in from overseas they'll need to accept those involved in logistics (land/air/sea) can't be completely isolated in a perfectly sanitised bubble 24/7 when outside the UK, or be subject to umpteen day isolation every time they return.

One of my students' dads works abroad during the week in a European country and flies home every weekend. I don't know why it's necessary (company director) but I assume he wouldn't do it for fun!

Another one is in India at the moment. We were just told personal reasons but I assume someone in their family must have died as I think that's the only reason they would have been allowed to go at the moment.

Others are in Ghana and Nigeria - flew out before Christmas and are stuck (or maybe choosing to stay put, I don't actually know).

Another has a sibling who flew out to Central America for their gap year in early January. Will be staying 6 months and on an organised work placement so wasn't considered a holiday and was permitted.

Thanks everyone, it's put understanding behind the people moving around the world just now.

It seems to me, it's a bit like trying to catch a particular grain of sand, and not knowing which one it is you have to catch. Even if we're down to a trickle of people coming in, and even if it's all people moving for essential work or life changes, then to stop the entry of a potentially 'worse' strain, they have to be looking at every option of containing it. I just hope with vaccination it all becomes easier.

Sometimes when I see a plane, it feels like that moment in 28 Days Later when the hero has been told there is life beyond his zombie hiding world, and then he sees a plane and he realises there's life going on in the world out there.....

FIL flew back from the Philippines (via Bahrain) a few days ago. He's been out there since December before London went into Tier 4. He's self isolating at home now.

He went to sell the house MIL and him were going to retire to (they're Filipino) - combination of coronavirus and the political situation in the Philippines.

@Hmmph well for example if an engineer works on a ship for 3 weeks on and 3 weeks off...where do you see an available time for them to quarantine for 2 weeks?? Do they not see their families? Does the company pay them to quarantine for two extra weeks? (they don't have money for that) because every day they "work"then they are also entitled to a days leave, and also then the company will need to pay for another person to be on the ship whilst the engineer is quarantine. It's just not possible, do what they do is they test them every 5-7 days and they are tested when leaving a country and tested when arriving etc. There are ways around it. Quarantine isn't always the answer. It's still costs them money to do it that way too thought

@Hmmph is not as simple as~

Engineers etc working in Dubai for example should be living there (for work) and therefore shouldn’t be flying backwards and forwards.

My dh lives in country A, is employed by a company in country B, the ship he works on is in Country C and moved around to Country D and E. It's not always so black and white unfortunately.