Every day around 70 to 110 people from so-called virus variant areas arrive at Frankfurt Airport. They are returnees from India, Brazil and South Africa. The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) describes countries and regions as virus variant areas in which coronavirus mutations pose a particular risk. In the meantime, everyone who gets on an airplane must be able to show a negative corona test. That was not always so. In January, when the airlines were still allowed to carry untested passengers and the passengers were relied on to take responsibility, the federal police picked up many travelers at the airport who were unable to submit a negative test. Now the spokesman for the federal police gives the all-clear. Such cases would only occur sporadically, he does not want to provide more detailed information at the moment.
However, in order to prevent the introduction of mutants, one does not want to rely solely on tests. Entrants from virus variant areas are obliged to go into quarantine after their arrival in Frankfurt; According to an epidemiologist from the Frankfurt Health Department, it can only be checked "sporadically" whether they really do this. What is certain, however, is that at least some people use local public transport to reach the quarantine, which means that infection cannot be ruled out for others. Because the period between the test of the returnees and their arrival in Frankfurt can be more than two days according to the legal requirements. Lots of time in which an undetected infection can become contagious.Because travelers can check in with a 48-hour old corona test on the other side of the world and land in Frankfurt after a flight of several hours and possible changes.
"Snapshot of the infection process"
An exception are passengers who are unable to present a negative test when departing from virus variant areas.
These must be tested directly at the departure airport, which, according to the RKI, can be done within twelve hours before the flight.
According to a spokeswoman, the Hessian Ministry of Social Affairs is not aiming to set similarly strict regulations in general for all travelers from variant areas.
The existing measures are sufficient and appropriate.
The ministry is currently rejecting an obligation to test again at the destination airport, i.e. here in Frankfurt.
Travelers from risk areas such as Bulgaria or the Czech Republic, in which, according to the RKI, there is an increased risk of infection with SARS-CoV-2, can shorten their quarantine with a corona test. This does not apply to returnees from virus variant areas. You must spend the full 14 days in isolation. To conclude from this regulation that corona tests in mutants provide unreliable results is wrong, according to the epidemiologist of the Frankfurt Health Department.
The spokeswoman for the Ministry of Social Affairs agrees and points out that a negative test result is only a “snapshot of the infection process”.
There is a possibility that only a few viruses are found on the mucous membrane at the beginning of an infection, which would give false certainty in the event of negative test results.
"An infection can only be ruled out with a high degree of probability after the 14-day quarantine has expired."
Personal responsibility in quarantine
A more comprehensive picture could possibly be obtained from a second test upon entry, which could also secure the transfer of passengers from virus variant areas. If, for example, a returnee from India changes his plane in Munich to fly on to Frankfurt, he would be surrounded by travelers on the plane who do not have to comply with quarantine after landing. The epidemiologist at the Frankfurt Health Department does not see any danger in such a scenario. If symptoms should arise retrospectively on a returnees, their contact persons on the plane would be identified. That would be the passengers in the same row as well as the rows in front of and behind.
At the airport there are few passengers who worry their heads about such questions. Some know that they have to be in quarantine and for how long. Others just wave tiredly at the word and pull their suitcases in the direction of the S-Bahn. None of the respondents went to the test center. “Again?” Asks a woman, shaking her head.
Nobody actually knows how their quarantine is checked. Someone who has returned from the Maldives speaks of “personal responsibility”, and that is usually the case. The fact that officials actually show up at the door of a returnee's apartment only happens if the Frankfurt health department has “indications of a violation of the quarantine obligation”. In addition, returnees from virus variant areas would be informed by telephone about their quarantine obligation; this only applies in part to those entering from risk areas, according to the health department.