CAA bans meals in domestic flights amid Omicron upsurge

Says the restrictions are aimed at curbing the spread of coronavirus on the directives of NCOC

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) on Saturday banned the serving of meals on domestic flights in line with the directives of National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) to curb the spread of Omicron variant of coronavirus in the country.

“Amid rising Omicron cases across the country, the NCOC bans serving meals/snacks onboard domestic flights and public transport effective from January 17,” the aviation authority said in a tweet.

Amid rising Omicron Covid 19 cases across the country, NCOC bans serving meals/snacks on board domestic flights and public transport effective 17 January. pic.twitter.com/eF1ADBoesX

— PCAAOfficial (@official_pcaa) January 15, 2022

Pakistan has reported four Covid-19 related deaths and 4,286 positive cases recorded in the last 24 hours.

According to NCOC’s statistics, 52,522 tests were conducted and positivity ratio remained 8.16 per cent.

A week ago, Planning Minister Asad Umar warned the Omicron variant was spreading rapidly in Pakistan and feared that it would spread even more quickly in days to come.

A copy of the CAA's notification available with The Express Tribune

Umar, also the NCOC chief, told a media briefing that vaccination and following the Covid-induced standard operating procedures were the only way to avoid the spread of the new variant.

Also read: NCOC warns Omicron spreading fast

In March last year, the CAA imposed a ban on serving drinking water to passengers on domestic flights in view of the surge in Covid-19 cases.

It had cited the third wave of the pandemic as the reason for the restriction, saying the passengers will be provided with disposable water bottles.

To ensure further safety, the CAA had said that the bottles will be attached to each of the seats before the boarding of passengers.