Qantas has announced that anyone wishing to fly with them will have to prove they’ve had the COVID vaccine once it’s widely available.
The Australian airline’s Dublin born CEO Alan Joyce says compulsory vaccinations will be a “necessity” once they become available to the public.
And Joyce told Channel 9’s A Current Affair that he believed that rival carriers would also follow suit and insist that passengers had taken the Covid jab.
He said: "We are looking at changing our terms and conditions to say for international travellers that we will ask people to have a vaccination before they can get on the aircraft.”
He continued: "Certainly for international visitors coming out (to Australia) and people leaving the country, we think that’s a necessity.”
The Tallaght man said discussions with other executives in the industry he had had suggested they would also look for proof of innoculation.
He added: “I think that’s going to be a common thing [after] talking to my colleagues in other airlines around the globe."
Other measures international carriers have muted include the introduction of a "health visa"
It emerged last week that Ireland could have vaccines rolling in time for the festive season with Taoiseach Micheál Martin declaring it would be “a wonderful Christmas present".
At least three separate vaccines in development have showing highly promising results in tests.
Australia's borders have been closed to non-residents since April, leading to the suspension of the majority of Qantas’s international routes.
The carrier has indicated that it doesn't expect to reopen most of them until the middle of next year.
There were around 18,000 Irish people in Australia on temporary visa when the pandemic was declared in March.
