Changi Airport developing check-in queue system for safe distancing purpose

 Report by : Gan Yung Chyan, KUCINTA SETIA

It is common knowledge that international passengers of airlines need to check-in at least three hours before departure time at Changi Airport. However this does not take into consideration a limit to a number of passengers that can appear at the counter at one time on the basis of safe distancing. 

In an attempt to ensure safe distancing between the passengers, Changi Airport is currently developing its online check-in queue system, allowing passengers to book their queue slot purpose at Changi Q Safe, www.changiqsafe.com, before proceeding for their trip to the airport for check-in. The web-site is rudimentary at the time this report is prepared.

At Changi Q Safe,  it is impossible to book a slot for a First Class, Business Class or Economy Class queue for the time being unless the participating airline provides a specific link to the airline page for the passenger queue booking to proceed free-of-charge. 

The Changi Q Safe system may fully be operational when Singapore and Hong Kong start "travel bubble" flights between the two cities in the near future.

The first airline to experiment the feasibility of Changi Q Safe is Myanmar National Airlines. At the page www.changiqsafe.com/qsafe-en/myn-na, only Economy Class passengers can book a queue time slot after indicating the number of passengers under an itinerary booking, print the page and bring it to the check-in counter at the specific time to check-in after scanning the QR code for contact tracing.

Currently, Myanmar National Airlines operates ad hoc relief flights to Singapore to bring Myanmar migrant workers and foreign domestic workers back to Yangon. According to the Myanmar Government information, if foreign travelers on relief flights arrive in Yangon during the pandemic, they have to undergo quarantine of two weeks besides proof of home quarantine of seven days before departure. They have also to undergo SARS-CoV-2 testing at the point of arrival in Myanmar and before departure from Myanmar. Myanmar nationals need to undergo quarantine of 14 days upon arrival in Myanmar.

According to Myanmar's National Health Laboratory, the cost of a covid test is 150,000 kyats upon arrival and 200,000 kyats before departure.

As of 30 October 2020, the total number of confirmed covid cases in Myanmar has crossed the 50,000th mark, at 50,403 including 1199 deaths.