DUBAI: Etihad Airways is only operating flights with pilots and cabin crew who have been vaccinated against the coronavirus disease, the Abu Dhabi state carrier said on Wednesday.
The airline has made a coronavirus vaccine developed by China National Pharmaceutical Group (Sinopharm) available to employees.
“We proactively made the vaccine available to all our employees to not only help combat the effects of COVID-19 but to make travelers feel confident and reassured the next time they fly with us,” Chief Executive Tony Douglas said in a statement.
He said he had received the vaccine, which has also been made available for free to the general population of the United Arab Emirates.
100% من طاقمنا حصلوا على التطعيم.
نحن أول شركة طيران في العالم تقوم بتطعيم جميع الطيارين وطاقم الضيافة الجوية العاملين على متن الطائرات ضد كوفيد-19. pic.twitter.com/gDlWrn6Cc5— الاتحاد للطيران (@etihadar) February 10, 2021
It was not immediately clear how many cabin crew and pilots have been vaccinated. The airline said more than 75% of its workforce have received at least a first dose of the vaccine.
Dubai’s Emirates Airline has also offered the Sinopharm vaccine to staff as well as one developed by Pfizer-BioNTech.
The UAE has seen a sharp rise in coronavirus infections since the start of the year, with daily cases peaking at a record 3,977 on Feb. 3.
