Delta, Virgin, and Atlantic Airlines to include NY in Testing Mandate for UK Flights

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On Monday, the governor of New York Andrew Cuomo has announced that he asked Delta Airlines, Virgin Airlines, and Atlantic Airways, to add New York State to the list of 120 countries. These countries are requiring passengers traveling from the United Kingdom to get a negative COVID-19 test result before boarding flights. British Airways has agreed and will require a negative test pre-boarding starting Tuesday. The governor said New York State will pursue other options if these 3 major airlines don’t agree voluntarily. Cuomo said, “This is another disaster waiting to happen. This would be Take-Two. You know how they talk about the second wave – how we haven’t had a second wave. This would be the second wave. This would be a mutated virus coming back”.

Point to be noted that New York State is not a country but Cuomo said it’s under a public health emergency and that incompetence from the federal government is not an option for us in New York. The governor cited British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who publicly stated that the new variant of the coronavirus sweeping across southern England is 70% more transmissible than the old strain. Cuomo said, “The strain is so serious that the UK has closed down again. We are on notice about it. Why don’t we act intelligently for a change? Why don’t we mandate testing before people get on the flight, or hold the flights from the UK now? Many other countries have done this”.

In Albany holding a COVID briefing. Watch live: https://t.co/pGO06urXgK

— Archive: Governor Andrew Cuomo (@NYGovCuomo) December 21, 2020

The decision to temporarily ban flights from the UK was made on Sunday by several European countries. Canada left a flight from the UK sitting on the tarmac. Cuomo urged the federal government to require pre-boarding testing on all flights from the UK or go a step further to halt all travel from the UK entirely. He said he believes the new variant has already arrived in the US because New York State health officials have recorded 9,007 new cases. There are 109 additional fatalities related to COVID-19. At least 6,331 people remained hospitalized statewide with the illness. Cuomo said he is in no special group to receive priority for the vaccination. He said, “Our priority for vaccination will include EMS workers, federally-qualified health center employees, funeral home workers, coroners, medical examiners, other congregate care workers, and residents”.