People Onboard an Air New Zealand Flight will be Vaccinated

If you’re like the majority of vaccinated people, you probably got your Covid-19 injection at a doctor’s office, a drugstore, or a mass vaccination centre. However, some travelers in New Zealand will get the opportunity to get vaccinated in a unique setting – on board a Boeing 787 plane.

The country is promoting this Saturday, Oct 16, as “Super Saturday,” and is launching efforts to get all eligible people to obtain their Covid-19 vaccines if they haven’t already. Air New Zealand has gotten in on the act with its own “Jabaseat” initiative, which involves using one of its Dreamliner’s as a temporary immunisation facility at Auckland Airport.

There will be no real flying but customers who register for the free service will receive a tour of the airline’s hangar, complimentary food and beverages while they wait, and a souvenir boarding card.

Air New Zealand has revealed its “no jab, no-fly” policy for foreign visitors; when the company restarts international flights, all passengers and employees would be required to be vaccinated.

“Being immunised against Covid-19 is the new reality of foreign travel -many of the places’ Kiwis wish to visit are already off-limits to unvaccinated tourists.”

 “The sooner we get vaccinated, the sooner we can fly Kiwis to destinations like New York, Vancouver, and Narita,” said Air New Zealand CEO Greg Foran in a statement.

“We’ve heard from consumers and staff alike that this metric is essential to them.” It came through loud and clear throughout our recent employee consultation process, and we want to do everything we can to safeguard them. Mandatory immunisation on our foreign flights will provide customers and staff with assurance that everyone onboard satisfies the same health criteria as they do”.