Abu Dhabi will add the UK to its list of green list countries on Sunday but the move is unlikely to significantly “move the needle” on demand, according to experts.
Passengers arriving from green list countries will be exempt from mandatory quarantine measures after landing in Abu Dhabi and will only be required to undergo PCR testing upon arrival at Abu Dhabi Airport.
“Such unilateral changes will not really create demand; it requires bilateral agreements where ideally both countries’ relevant authorities announce the lifting at – or at least close to – the same time,” said John Grant, partner at UK-based consultancy Midas Aviation.
Grant said that unilateral announcements often “spark interest” but there may be “little progress” for the foreseeable future.
“It is a bit of light at the end of the tunnel but the tunnel remains very long,” the expert said.
John Grant, partner at UK-based consultancy Midas Aviation
Delayed optimism
According to Saj Ahmad, chief analyst at UK-based StrategicAero Research, real optimism for the revival of the UK-UAE air corridor will only be seen when the UK removes the Emirates from its own red list.
“While it’s welcome that Abu Dhabi will allow UK visitors, the reality is that traffic from Britain to the wider UAE is as good as dead – and until the UAE is removed off the red list, that status is unlikely to change,” the expert said.
The DCT Abu Dhabi also announced it would add a further seven countries to its green list: Cuba, Portugal, Russia, Switzerland, Taiwan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.
“Of course, other permitted countries will provide some revenue for the UAE travel coffers, but the void left behind from high-yield, high fare and premium-seeking UK travellers will mean that the UAE is going to lose out on serious amounts of income for a good long while yet,” Ahmad said.
Saj Ahmad, chief analyst at UK-based StrategicAero Research
“Given there’s so many moving parts to this dynamic, it’s impossible to know who will do what and when,” he added.
Countries, regions, and territories included within the ‘green list’ are regularly updated based on international development and inclusion in the list is subject to strict criteria of health and safety to ensure the wellbeing of the UAE community, a DCT Abu Dhabi statement said.
The list also only applies to countries passengers are arriving from rather than citizenship, it added.
Countries already on the list include Australia, Bhutan, Brunei, China, Greenland, Hong Kong, Iceland, Israel, Mauritius, Morocco, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, Singapore and South Korea.
While the UAE capital officially reopened to tourists on December 24 last year, strict coronavirus preventative measures remain in place to enter the emirate, including from neighbouring Dubai.
The inclusion of the UK comes just days after its Transport Secretary suggested the UAE could remain on its red list for air travel indefinitely because Dubai and Abu Dhabi are key transit hubs.
Robert Boyle, former strategy chief at British Airways and founder of GridPoint Consulting
Robert Boyle, former strategy chief at British Airways and founder of GridPoint Consulting, also said in recent research that the UAE was likely to be given an amber rating in the UK’s traffic light system to reopen air travel for the same reason.
Going abroad on holiday is currently illegal in England but rules are set to be relaxed from May 17 if the road map out of coronavirus lockdown continues on schedule.
Earlier this month, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson advised UK travellers not to book foreign holidays in a move that was a blow to the UAE tourism industry.
Follow us on
