The National Civil Aviation Administration stressed that “connectivity is assured, but with fewer arrivals”

The head of the National Civil Aviation Administration (ANAC), Paola Tamburelli, said on Sunday that he was actively working, in dialogue with the airlines that operate international flights to and from Argentina, to implement, in the coming days, the government’s decision to limit the entry of persons into the country by air.

Tamburelli said it was a “very complicated and very active” weekend of dialogue with airlines and other state agencies to implement the new quota, which means a reduction of 70% over the previous, 2,000 daily income. The new quota, he acknowledged, is the decision with the greatest impact.

Interviewed on Rayos X, by Radio 10, the official said that The priority of dialogue with companies and other state agencies is to prevent many Argentines from being stranded abroad for long. “They were stranded when there were no flights; some will have to delay their arrival, but connectivity is assured, although with fewer arrivals, ”he said.

Asked how many daily flights will arrive in Argentina, the ANAC chief said it will depend on how much airlines limit themselves in terms of percentage of flight occupancy and use smaller planes.

In addition, he pointed out that there are “thousands” of Argentines abroad and that the exchange with other state agencies (although he did not mention it, the main one is probably the National Directorate of Migration) is to try to find out where there is a greater concentration of Argentines abroad, in order to organize flights so that every day Argentines arrive from different regions of the world.

“From a practical point of view, we are in dialogue every day so that all companies have the possibility of operating,” said the official, who affirmed that “connectivity is ensured on a daily basis in all areas and dialogue with business is used to determine how to achieve this goal.

In addition, he stressed that companies dialogue and can coordinate with each other. “Today, all the companies are in alliances that allow them to exchange passengers, and there are also agreements between alliances. The dialogue is very fluid and has been accentuated by the pandemic, but there is also a component of competition, ”he stressed.

En cuanto a la queja o sospecha de algunas empresas extranjeras de que el regulador otorga trato privilegiado a Aerolíneas Argentinas, la aerolínea de bandera, Tamburelli dijo que “uno trata de que si hay disminución de operaciones sea de manera recípridioca, que nos están p the countries. Of course, we always try to take care of Aerolineas Argentinas, but the quota applies to everyone and also includes it ”.

It is a “very dynamic” situation, he underlined and explained that “when there are different companies competing in the same destination, all must decrease the same percentage of flights.

A health problem

Regarding the time that Argentines abroad will have to wait to return to the country, Tamburelli acknowledged the difficult situation and the impossibility of a quick solution. “There are thousands of Argentines abroad. There is no way to know how many require immediate feedback, it will depend on how the businesses operate and what conversations they have with each other. We do not know who will be blocked or with a return delayed for how long, “he admitted. And he stressed that what is at stake is a health problem.” What we want to prevent is that these new strains enter the country and spread. This will imply that some passengers are delayed, “he said.

These types of measures have been taken by many countries, the official said. “These new strains are extremely dangerous, they are very contagious. That’s why the testing, the isolation, we strongly ask that this be taken into account. “

So far, he concluded, individual responsibility had been challenged, for example, with the rule that people arriving in the country must self-isolate themselves, but government-led inspections have determined, He said that “38% of people who came from abroad were not isolated”.

“In 15 months of the pandemic, we are trying to maintain air traffic. But it is getting more and more difficult. Individual responsibility continues to be fundamental for this, ”he stressed.

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