Operational Guidelines for Air Crew (version 2)
V2. Effective 19 January 2022
Preface
The Operational Guidelines for International Air Crew (the Guidelines) are approved by the Chief Health Officer under the Quarantine and COVID-19 Testing for International Air Crew Direction No.2 (the Direction) or its successor.
The Guidelines apply to:
Unvaccinated Queensland-based air crew, Australian Defence Force air crew and international air crew who have been in a country other than Australia or a safe travel zone country, within the 14 days immediately before arrival in Queensland; and
Unvaccinated domestic air crew who have travelled on a crew-only flight with air crew who have been in a country other than Australia or a safe travel zone country, within the 14 days immediately before arrival in Queensland
1.1 Requirements for transporting air crew
Airline operators must ensure appropriate private transportation is available for unvaccinated Queensland-based air crew who wish to quarantine at a residence to:
travel from the airport to their residence; and
travel from their residence to the airport to depart on another flight leaving Australia before the end of the quarantine period; and
leave their residence for a permitted purpose such as to undertake a COVID-19 test or to attend mandatory regulatory training.
Appropriate transport means an air crew member’s private vehicle or transport provided by an endorsed transport provider with a Transport Plan in the form approved by the Chief Health Officer.
Any travel by private vehicle must occur using a private vehicle that does not contain passengers other than fellow crew members from the inbound or outbound flight. Public transport must not be used.
Unvaccinated air crew required to Quarantine must travel by the most direct route and no stops should be made.
Unvaccinated air crew must wear a face mask at all times unless travelling alone by private vehicle and practice good hand hygiene with use of alcohol-based hand rub. Transport drivers must comply with all requirements in their Transport Plan at all times while transporting air crew.
The vehicle should be cleaned thoroughly following the travel following the cleaning requirements in the transport provider’s Transport Plan.
A private vehicle must not be used by anyone else until thoroughly cleaned in accordance with the cleaning requirements outlined in this guideline.
Cleaning requirements
Airlines must ensure vehicles used for transport of unvaccinated international air crew are cleaned thoroughly after use.
Transport providers engaged by airlines to provide transport for unvaccinated air crew must comply with the cleaning requirements outlined in their Transport Plan.
Unvaccinated Queensland-based air crew using their own private vehicle to travel to and from their residence must clean all hard surfaces prior to onboarding new passengers. Disinfectant solutions must be maintained at an appropriate strength and used in accordance with the manufacturers’ instructions.
Airlines must advise staff to promote natural ventilation during travel, including opening car windows where possible, and increasing mechanical ventilation where possible by optimising air conditioning or other system settings (such as by maximising the intake of outside air and reducing or avoiding recirculation of air).
1.2 Home quarantine requirements
A residence is a person’s primary place of residence in Queensland. Air crew accommodation is not a residence. Any air crew who do not ordinarily live in Queensland will need to complete quarantine at the government-nominated crew hotel or air crew accommodation.
Living with other people
If unvaccinated air crew ordinarily live with other people in their residence, the other people in the household will not be required to quarantine and can continue to go about their daily lives as normal.
Unvaccinated air crew permitted to quarantine at their residence must, as far as reasonably practicable:
stay in their own room
use a separate bathroom or clean the bathroom each time it is used
stay at least 1.5 metres away from others
not mix or mingle with household members
not enter common areas
wear a mask when moving through shared spaces in the house (e.g. to go to the bathroom) and stay at least 1.5 meters away from other people. Air crew should only move through the house to use the bathroom.
not prepare food for other people in the household
not share household items
get the house regularly cleaned by another member of the household paying particular attention to frequently touched items such as door handles, phones and remote controls.
Everyone in the household must, as far as reasonably practicable:
practice good hand and respiratory hygiene
practice physical distancing
avoid sharing household items
monitor their health for any COVID-19 symptoms and present for a COVID-19 PCR test if they develop any symptoms
1.3 Leaving quarantine to receive a COVID-19 test
Where possible, airlines should facilitate COVID-19 surveillance testing to occur at an air crew member’s residence where they are completing quarantine.
In circumstances where it is not possible to facilitate testing in a residence, a quarantined air crew member must travel to the testing location in accordance with 1.1 Requirements for transport of Queensland-based air crew above.
1.4 Crew-only flights
Unvaccinated air crew permitted to leave their nominated premises to board a flight to another jurisdiction must transfer directly to the airport in a private vehicle with no passengers other than fellow crew members from the outbound flight. The driver must wear a face mask at all times.
Transport must occur by an air crew member’s private vehicle or by an endorsed transport provider engaged by an airline operator.
A crew-only flight repositioning to another jurisdiction must only have air crew on board and not transport any passengers.
Dr John Gerrard
Queensland Chief Health Officer
Queensland Health
19 January 2022