Faced with fierce in-room confinement in Bangkok for such a long time, we all are craving for more freedom and normality while on a layover there. In recent months rumours of other airline crews being exempted from the restrictions in Bangkok arose regularly and led to a certain frustration amongst all Cargolux pilots, simply because everyone felt left alone in our Bangkok dilemma.
Your ALPL Board regularly investigated these rumours only to find out that official information from the Thai authorities concerning crews is rare, sometimes contradicting and incomplete. It appears, that in room confinement still is mandatory, even for vaccinated crews. Please click here to read the latest letter that was sent to management concerning the layover situation in Bangkok.
In our recent vaccination survey, we tried to get a better picture of the vaccination status of our colleagues. According to the feedback we received, roughly 91% of the pilots indicate to be vaccinated. This knowledge will allow us to make informed decisions in the event of any future operational changes in connection with the COVID-19 vaccination rate.
In this context, some colleagues have raised their concerns that the company would only send vaccinated pilots to destinations like Bangkok with in-room confinement, whilst unvaccinated colleagues would be able to enjoy trips with less restrictions or no restrictions at all.
To make it clear, it is the firm position of your ALPL Board that this would not be acceptable and could lead to serious conflicts amongst the pilots. Management informed us that this is not intended.
Finally, we would like to point out once again that a even higher vaccination rate amongst the pilots could support our case and accelerate the process to have those restrictions we currently see in Bangkok and other places being lifted.
