China News Service, Sanya, August 14 (Reporter Wang Xiaobin and Li Yufan) Tens of thousands of passengers are stranded in Sanya due to the epidemic, and all parties are speeding up the return of passengers.
As of 15:00 on August 13, Sanya City has organized 7,708 people to return by plane.
Under what conditions can a return flight take off from Sanya?
Are there any blockages on the way back to work?
A reporter from Chinanews.com had an exclusive dialogue with Deng Lizhang, general manager of Hainan Airlines Sanya Branch.
From the airline level, he introduced the ongoing transfer of passengers stranded in Sanya to the outlying islands.
The following is the transcript of the conversation:
On August 10, the flight crew of the return flight of passengers stranded in Sanya patrolled the cabin.
Photo by Chen Xi
Reporter from Chinanews.com: Passengers stranded in Sanya are in the process of leaving the island. Please brief us on the work of Hainan Airlines.
Deng Lizhang: The
transfer of stranded passengers in Sanya started on August 9.
The first flight from Sanya to Xi'an on August 9 was carried out by Hainan Airlines.
If the first flight doesn't take off smoothly, the subsequent flights don't know what to do.
At that time, we overcame difficulties such as short time, heavy tasks, and unclear procedures, and successfully implemented the flight with the assistance of all parties.
After the first flight, from August 9th to 12th, Hainan Airlines carried out a total of 13 flights, and the number of transfer passengers reached 2,325.
Among the airlines currently performing transfer tasks, Hainan Airlines has the highest proportion of transfer passengers and flight frequencies.
Chinanews.com reporter: What is the process of transferring stranded passengers at the airline level?
Deng Lizhang:
The current process of transferring passengers is roughly like this. Every day, we will evaluate the flights that can be flown the next day based on the overall capacity, and then match them with the list of outlying island passengers submitted by the relevant departments.
For example, how many people will be transferred to Xi'an and how many people will be transferred to Shanghai, we will first arrange the flight, which will specifically involve the arrangement of wide-body aircraft and narrow-body aircraft, which will be matched according to the number of passengers and seat requirements.
The process is very smooth so far.
Chinanews.com reporter: Does the flight to transfer stranded passengers need to meet a certain level of occupancy?
Deng Lizhang:
For this transfer, the first consideration is the impact on the overall epidemic prevention and control, and then the urgency of evacuating passengers.
There are not too many requirements in terms of load factor.
However, from the perspective of epidemic prevention policies, we do not want passengers to be too full.
In addition, it also depends on the destination's requirements for the number of people carried on a single flight, and the destination government depends on the local airport's ability to organize epidemic prevention (and determine the number of flights).
From the airline's point of view, we do not consider the passenger load factor.
As long as the passengers comply with the policy, regardless of whether the number is large or small, the airline will actively arrange flights according to the relevant requirements and the needs of the passengers.
At present, due to the large number of passengers, the passenger load factor of transfer flights is relatively high except for accidental factors.
On August 9, the Hainan Airlines crew was ready to fly.
Photo courtesy of Huang Zengyan
Chinanews.com reporter: As far as the airline company is concerned, under what conditions can a flight to transfer stranded passengers take off from Sanya Phoenix International Airport?
Deng Lizhang:
Returning stranded passengers involves the deployment of capacity, the qualifications of routes, and the arrangement of flight schedules.
Airlines already have sufficient capacity and route qualifications.
It's just that when the epidemic began to appear, a lot of capacity was moved out.
When Sanya needed to evacuate passengers, Hainan Airlines dispatched 4 wide-body aircraft and 3 narrow-body aircraft back to Sanya for operation.
From the airline's point of view, as long as the passengers meet the qualifications, we will do ticketing services for passengers, arrange flights, and then carry them.
The key point is to look at the direction and destination of passenger evacuation provided by the relevant departments, and then confirm the policy of accepting returning passengers with the destination city.
Chinanews.com reporter: At present, for airlines, can the conditions for the return flight to take off can be successfully satisfied?
Deng Lizhang:
For airlines, the smoothness and accuracy of information are very important.
For example, if we arrange a flight from Sanya to Shanghai tomorrow, we need to know in advance how many passengers will take this flight and when will these passengers arrive at the airport.
There are two problems for airlines here, one is the time when passengers arrive at the airport.
We hope that they can arrive relatively more concentratedly, to avoid a flight with 150 people, 100 people have arrived, and the other 50 people are waiting, which may cause the flight to be delayed for a long time.
Because it is impossible to wait for such a return flight, passengers who have already arrived at the airport will inevitably feel emotional after waiting for a long time.
In terms of the accuracy of passenger information, we found during the transfer process that foreign passengers are a problem.
Foreign travelers use passports, and some people's contact information and payment methods are different from domestic travelers.
Their passport numbers cannot reflect whether they are adults or children in the list. These require airlines to contact them, and some foreign passengers will have some problems in terms of contact information.
Later, we will discuss with the relevant departments. For passengers who cannot be reached, the relevant departments will send them to the airport, and we will provide services for these people at the airport counter.
At present, these blockages are gradually dredging and improving.
Chinanews.com reporter: From the first shift, which was a little rushed, to the fact that thousands of people can be transported every day, what experience can you share?
Deng Lizhang:
At present, the communication between different cities on epidemic prevention and control is generally smooth. Once it is determined that the destination can be received, the airline will immediately organize the flight plan, and then the relevant departments will organize passengers to arrive at the airport in the concentrated time period as possible, so that the overall operation is carried out. will be smooth.
On August 9, the ground service staff of Hainan Airlines checked in for passengers.
Photo courtesy of Huang Zengyan
Chinanews.com reporter: Based on the temporary global static management on August 6, some travelers have been in Sanya for more than a week. As the head of the airline that organizes the return of passengers on the front line, what would you like to say to these passengers?
Deng Lizhang:
Tell me about my personal suggestions and opinions.
I hope everyone believes in the people of Sanya, the Sanya city government, and the staff of our airline.
As long as everyone can perform nucleic acid testing in accordance with regulations and submit applications for outlying islands, we will organize more capacity as soon as possible, carry out faster and more effective communication, organize ticketing services as soon as possible, and formulate clear flight plans.
We all know that there are many high-risk areas in Sanya, and many employees of our branch are locked up at home.
Hainan Province and Sanya City have mentioned many times that the relevant transshipment work should be organized in the cleanest, safest, and most in line with epidemic prevention policies.
Therefore, we are equivalent to using less than half of the usual people, doing much more security work than usual.
Fortunately, the relevant government departments have given a lot of support, and we will work together to bring everyone back to their hometown as soon as possible.
(Finish)