Test at airport

[WHL]

Went and picked up my friend from Larnaca airport last night, and this is how he got on, he was on a Wizz Air flight from Luton, all shops closed at the terminal except. Pret , Boots, W H Smiths so he was able to get something to eat and drink, got on the plane but apparently the plane hit some birds on landing, and the engineers needed to give it the once over before letting it take off, so they were stuck on the plane for over an hour and a half before the all clear, about a hundred passengers only, so they had all had elbow room, on landing they were split up on those who had already been tested in the UK and those who needed a test at the airport, about a third had the test certificate and were taken through to immigration/baggage, the rest were taken to a building, were they gave their details, and went into a booth were a medic, told them to look upwards and pushed a long prod into their nose, very uncomfortable, , job done, and then they were allowed to leave the terminal, about three hours later they got the results.
forgot to add he paid 60 euro for the test.

[sunny201]

Hi WHL
I take it your friend also filled in a Cyprus flight pass ?

sunny201

[WHL]

Hi WHL
I take it your friend also filled in a Cyprus flight pass ?

sunny201

Yes 24 hours before take off, I should of added he paid 60euro

[WHL]

Thanks for the update WHL. was your friend a resident here.

Yes he is,but he spends alot of time back in the UK

[sunny201]

Thanks for the reply WHL
sunny201

[sunspot]

WHL, thank you for that info. Does your friend have to self isolate for 14 days?

[WHL]

WHL, thank you for that info. Does your friend have to self isolate for 14 days?

No because he tested negative

[WHL]

WHL thanks so its more of a repatriation than a tourist flight, as he would have a yellow slip or similar.

He is a legal resident I dont know if the others were tourists, but out of a hundred im guessing some of them were.

[sunspot]

Thank you, WHL. All your info is a great help. We are legal residents and are flying Wizzair from Luton to Larnaca on Monday. It is good to know what to expect.

[PolemIan]

Logically all of those on the flight must have been legal residents as U.K. is still in Category C and FlightPass guidelines currently only allow passengers who are citizens / legal residents / travelling under Vienna convention / have special permission from Cyprus government, to travel into Cyprus from the U.K.

They are also required to self isolate for 14 days regardless of the test results.

Ian

[WHL]

Logically all of those on the flight must have been legal residents as U.K. is still in Category C and FlightPass guidelines currently only allow passengers who are citizens / legal residents / travelling under Vienna convention / have special permission from Cyprus government, to travel into Cyprus from the U.K.

They are also required to self isolate for 14 days regardless of the test results.

Ian

Not so, my friend asked this question and he was told it isn't nessasery , he was told to go straight home, and wait for the result, if it was negative, then just carry on as normal.

[trevnhil]

It is a good job that testing is still being done .... Six new cases today (Thursday)

" Three of Thursday’s Six new cases were refugees who arrived in the north from Syria via Turkey, and who were tested for the virus prior to their admission into the Pournara camp in Kokkinotrimithia.

Another new case involved a Brazilian football player for Enosis Neon Paralimni FC, who flew to Cyprus from Brazil via Zurich on Wednesday after receiving special permission from local authorities. The player was tested for the virus upon arrival at the airport.

Two more cases announced on Thursday involve family members of a hotel worker that was announced positive for coronavirus on July 8. "

https://knews.kathimerini.com.cy/en/new ... irus-cases

[PolemIan]

WHL, then someone at Larnaca needs a bollocking. It’s very clear on FlightPass:

Category C

If you are travelling to the Republic of Cyprus from a Category C Country or if you have stayed/lived in a Category C Country within the past 14 days before your travel to the Republic of Cyprus or you will be a passenger on an international journey to the Republic of Cyprus via intermediate Countries of Category C with an overnight stay, you are allowed to enter in the Republic of Cyprus and to perform the COVID-19 test upon your entry to the Republic of Cyprus, only if you belong to the below passenger categories:

Cypriot citizens, permanently residing in the Republic of Cyprus and their family members (foreign spouses, their minor children and their parents).
Persons legally residing in the Republic of Cyprus.
Persons allowed to enter in the Republic of Cyprus under the Vienna Convention.
Persons, regardless of nationality, having a special permission by the Republic of Cyprus Persons, as defined under the infectious Diseases (Determination of Measures Against the Spread of the COVID-19 Coronavirus disease) Decree (N.30), as amended.
Υou will be required to bear the cost of the COVID-19 laboratory test of 60 euros yourself, and pay any accommodation costs may arise (60 euros daily for single occupancy and 90 euros daily for double occupancy), If the test results will take a day or more to be completed, as well as transportation costs.

You will be required to remain under compulsory self-isolation for 14 days, according to the instructions and the precautionary and self-protection measures of the Ministry of Health, regardless of whether the result of the COVID-19 laboratory test is positive or negative, either at your residence or in case you do not have a residence in the Republic of Cyprus, at a place that will be indicated to you by the Republic of Cyprus”.

Ian

[WHL]

WHL, then someone at Larnaca needs a bollocking. It’s very clear on FlightPass:

Category C

If you are travelling to the Republic of Cyprus from a Category C Country or if you have stayed/lived in a Category C Country within the past 14 days before your travel to the Republic of Cyprus or you will be a passenger on an international journey to the Republic of Cyprus via intermediate Countries of Category C with an overnight stay, you are allowed to enter in the Republic of Cyprus and to perform the COVID-19 test upon your entry to the Republic of Cyprus, only if you belong to the below passenger categories:

Cypriot citizens, permanently residing in the Republic of Cyprus and their family members (foreign spouses, their minor children and their parents).
Persons legally residing in the Republic of Cyprus.
Persons allowed to enter in the Republic of Cyprus under the Vienna Convention.
Persons, regardless of nationality, having a special permission by the Republic of Cyprus Persons, as defined under the infectious Diseases (Determination of Measures Against the Spread of the COVID-19 Coronavirus disease) Decree (N.30), as amended.
Υou will be required to bear the cost of the COVID-19 laboratory test of 60 euros yourself, and pay any accommodation costs may arise (60 euros daily for single occupancy and 90 euros daily for double occupancy), If the test results will take a day or more to be completed, as well as transportation costs.

You will be required to remain under compulsory self-isolation for 14 days, according to the instructions and the precautionary and self-protection measures of the Ministry of Health, regardless of whether the result of the COVID-19 laboratory test is positive or negative, either at your residence or in case you do not have a residence in the Republic of Cyprus, at a place that will be indicated to you by the Republic of Cyprus”.

Ian

Just got off the phone to my mate and I asked him again, he was told go straight home and wait for the results, if they are negative carry on as normal,
Makes sense to me, why would you need to quarantine for 14 days if your tested nagative

[Yioula]

The “test” is just a moment in time that’s why 14 days isolation is required ie negative today positive tomorrow

[PolemIan]

Sadie, yes it’s frustrating, particularly as Cyprus has done such a good job and made lots of process improvements in a short space of time such as implementing the SMS and digital flight pass. We’ve been told they will fine people without a flightpass and no seem to be, in what I hope is an isolated case of diet her not following their own rules, or changing them without updating the web advice - which the whole world is potentially reading.

I imagine you would need to quarantine even with a negative test, because in coming from a country where the infection rates are deemed sufficiently high to allow only a very small subset of people in, it makes sense to adopt a belt and braces approach because, as has been pointed out many times on this and just about every other forum, the test is only negative at that specific point and a plane full of people coming from a high risk area could have spent 5 hours or so on plane infecting each other which may not show up for a few days.

Ian

[sunspot]

Fyi: We flew Wizzair from Luton to Larnaca on 20 July. Test procedures were as reported by WHL. We were allowed to leave the airport after testing. Were advised by SMS a few hours later that we we had tested negative. No advice at any time that we must or even should self-isolate. We are being careful nonetheless though very few people seem to be wearing masks here.

[PolemIan]

Sunspot, did you complete the FlightPass?

Ian

[Princebytor]

Another question for Sunspot..............Are you resident in Cyprus or do you live in the UK with a holiday home in Cyprus ?

[Princebytor]

Just seen the earlier part of the thread and that you are resident in Cyprus...............it is good to know that all the strenuous efforts taken by the Cypriot authorities to prevent Covid 19 even extend to their residents when they are in the UK, that's some protection!!!!!! Maybe I am being thick but at the moment the Cypriot authorities seem to think that any Brit arriving from the UK has the plague and wont be let in but anybody holding a Cypriot residency who has been in the UK can get in without quarantining, not sure I see the scientific logic in that ?