Singapore and Hong Kong to open Air Travel Bubble

Singapore and Hong Kong will open an Air Travel Bubble (ATB) on 22 November. The new scheme will start with one flight a day into each city with 200 passengers each way, increasing to two flights a day from 7 December. Announcing the news on 11 November, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) said travellers would have to take the ATB dedicated flights, but will have no restrictions on their travel purpose and do not have to follow a controlled itinerary. They will not be subject to quarantine but must test negative on Covid-19 PCR tests within 72 hours before their scheduled departure time. “The good progress in containing the spread of Covid-19 in Singapore and Hong Kong has given us the confidence to reopen our borders gradually, with safeguards in place to ensure our public health and safety,” the CAAS said. Upon arrival, travellers will also have to take a Covid-19 test at the airport and remain there until they receive their negative test results. Hong Kong travellers must download and register for the TraceTogether application on their mobile phones before departing for Singapore. “The Singapore-Hong Kong ATB enables us to achieve two objectives at the same time – open up our borders in a controlled manner, while maintaining safety in our societies,” Singapore’s transport minister Ong Ye Kung said. “While we may be starting small, this is an important step forward. I have no doubt both Singapore and Hong Kong will cooperate fully to make this scheme work.” Anyone who has remained in Singapore or Hong Kong in the last 14 consecutive days prior to travelling is eligible for the new air travel bubble scheme, apart from a few exclusions.