British Airways and Ryanair pilots and cabin crew operating flights from Copenhagen to the UK will be required to quarantine with their households for two weeks immediately after landing.
Overnight the UK government imposed a ban on all but British nationals and permanent residents arriving from Denmark, because of fears about a coronavirus mutation passed from mink to humans.
Previously flight crew have always been exempt from having to self-isolate when returning from locations on the government’s “no-go” list.
But such is the concern among the medical authorities about the mutation that pilots, cabin crew and anyone who lives with them must all self-isolate.
The sudden decision will mean the children of affected flight crew will not be able to attend school for two weeks, and their partners must not go out to work.
Exemptions for pilots and cabin crew will apply only if the aircraft returns from Copenhagen with no passengers on board – which would be highly unusual.
The quarantine requirement applies to the crew of the three British Airways flights from the Danish capital to Heathrow on Saturday, as well as Ryanair’s flights from Copenhagen to Manchester and London Stansted.
The Independent has asked for a response from both airlines.
SAS, which flies between Copenhagen and Heathrow, is unaffected because its flight crew are based in Denmark.
The Scottish airline, Loganair, has announced the suspension of its link between Aberdeen and Esbjerg in western Denmark from 9 to 22 November.
Scotland’s chief medical officer, Dr Gregor Smith, said: “This is a new strain and it is appropriate that we err on the side of caution.
“We do not want to see transmission of this strain in this country and it is imperative that anybody who has recently travelled from Denmark, and their household, should self-isolate for 14 days.”
