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Coronavirus Singapore
This Week in AsiaHealth & Environment

Coronavirus: Singapore’s closed borders spark scramble to return home amid global flight cuts

  • Tighter travel restrictions around the world have upended air travel, with some carriers slashing flights by up to 95 per cent
  • Singapore has banned tourists from entering the country, but has kept bars, restaurants and schools open

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Travellers undergo a temperature check at Singapore’s Changi Airport. Photo: EPA
Dewey SimandKok Xinghui
When Singapore announced it was shutting its borders to tourists starting Tuesday, entrepreneur Lee Xiaohui, 34, heaved a sigh of relief at her timing. Just two days earlier, she had booked her parents a flight home to the island nation from the United States, where they were helping out with her sister’s newborn.

Lee said she was lucky to have bought the tickets before California declared a state of emergency over the weekend, and tighter travel restrictions worldwide upended air travel. An online search shows just three flights leaving Los Angeles for Singapore this week, and only one next week.

“Considering that they are transiting in Los Angeles now, we are still quite worried and are unsure if they will be able to board their connecting flight,” she said. “We don’t want them to get stuck there because if they really catch the virus, they won’t get the attention they need. It is safer to be in Singapore even though they could get infected on the flight back.”

Amid the global uncertainty caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, many worried Singaporeans who are studying or working abroad have cut their trips short or are scrambling to return home as international airlines drastically reduce flights.

At least 65 airlines have cut flights by roughly 95 per cent as the coronavirus pandemic wreaks havoc on the global travel industry, with Singapore Airlines being the latest to ground passenger planes.

The national carrier on Monday said it would cut its flight capacity by 96 per cent until the end of April and ground 185 of its 196 aircraft. It has described the outbreak as the “greatest challenge that the SIA Group has faced in its existence”.

Singapore Airlines has announced it is cutting 96 per cent of its capacity until the end of April due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Photo: AFP
Singapore Airlines has announced it is cutting 96 per cent of its capacity until the end of April due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Photo: AFP
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