MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Falkland Islands, transportation arrangements for arriving passengers

MPC airport where the air bridge from Brize Norton lands several times a week. Photo: BFSAI

The Falkland Islands Government has informed that FIGO, (the government's office in London) will be asking southbound passengers for their onward travel arrangements from MPC to Stanley, when booking a flight. The requirement applies to arriving passengers from 15 February 2021 onwards.

While the Infectious Diseases Control (Coronavirus, Quarantine) Regulations 2020 are in effect, the only approved airport transport methods are:

• a seat booked with an approved designated airport transport provider – (this is Penguin Travel), or
• a vehicle which has been left at the airport for the passenger(s) to self-drive themselves to a quarantine address, or
• collection by someone with whom the arriving passenger will be quarantining.

Due to the health and safety requirements placed on designated transport providers, there is limited seating capacity and Penguin Travel has a maximum capacity of 40 passengers.

Requesting a seat via Penguin Travel only a few days before the flight is due to arrive in the Falkland Islands is therefore not advisable, as this is too short notice for people to make alternative travel arrangements if Penguin Travel is fully booked.

The decision follows a round of meetings between FIG and Mount Pleasant Complex officials given the sanitary situation at MPC, where military medics involved in quarantine surveillance swabbing tested positive for Covid-19.

“This means that travel to and from MPC should not be undertaken unless absolutely essential. People should not put themselves at risk and should speak to their employers in order to limit their movements on and off MPC as much as possible”, pointed out a first joint release in early February.