The UAE’s three major airlines have begun staff vaccinations for employees, with Emirates, Etihad and Flydubai all moving to protect frontline staff.
Emirates mass vaccination programme began on Monday morning with priority being placed on its frontline aviation workforce, including cabin crew, flight deck and other operationally focused roles.
The vaccinations move comes as the UAE’s Ministry of Health announced on Monday a further 3,471 new infections, a daily high, were detected in the past 24 hours, alongside 2,990 recoveries and six deaths due to complications.
In a statement Emirates said: “The airline, along with dnata, are among the first transport and air services organisations in the world to offer employees the option to get vaccinated against the Covid-19 virus.
“Over the course of the pandemic, Emirates and dnata have implemented multiple layers of safety measures, to ensure the health and safety of customers, employees and the communities served. The rollout of its vaccination programme is another step forward, helping to safeguard the health and wellbeing of aviation employees who serve the travelling public and help move essential goods around the world.”
The Emirates Group is making both the Pfizer-BioNTech and Sinopharm vaccines available.
A Flydubai spokesperson also confirmed the airline has also begun a voluntary programme for staff. “Flydubai has a vaccination drive underway for its employees,” the airline said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways has been proactive in promoting the Sinopharm vaccine to its staff, with Tony Douglas, group CEO, Etihad Aviation Group, already receiving his first dose of the Chinese vaccine at Etihad Airways Medical Centre, with his second due in just days.
A Dnata staff getting vaccinated
Douglas said: “From an aviation perspective, as borders continue to open up, we hope that through increased vaccination rates, people will feel more confident travelling not only for business and leisure but more importantly, to reconnect with their loved ones around the world.”
Dr Nadia Bastaki, vice president Medical Services and CSR, Etihad Aviation Group, said in a statement to Arabian Business: “Etihad coordinated with health authorities to be one of the first companies in Abu Dhabi to secure the vaccine for our staff. This was incredibly important to us because many of our employees had said it was incredibly important to them.
Tony Douglas, Etihad’s Group CEO, receives the COVID-19 vaccine
“Building on this, we also saw an opportunity for our Etihad Airways Medical Centre (EAMC), the first aeromedical centre in the Middle East, to expand their healthcare services by becoming an approved Covid vaccination clinic for Etihad employees and their families.”
In November, the International Air Transport Association said Middle Eastern airlines are expected to see their losses rise to $7.1 billion in 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic continues to decimate the aviation industry.
IATA figures also showed that air passenger demand in the region has slumped by 73 percent compared to 2019 while capacity has also fallen by 64.5 percent.
IATA previously said full-year 2020 passenger numbers in the Middle East are forecast to reach only 30 percent of 2019 levels, down significantly from the 45 percent that was projected in July.
In absolute numbers, the Middle East is expected to see 60 million travellers this year compared to the 203 million in 2019.
The aviation authority said that a full return to 2019 levels is not expected until late 2024 in the Middle East region.
Globally, airline revenues this year will plunge by 60 percent as a result of the coronavirus pandemic which threatens the survival of the industry, IATA said.
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