CAAC has recently published the ninth edition of Preventing Spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Guideline for Airlines and Airports (hereinafter referred to as the Guideline (Ninth Edition)) with the purpose of fully implementing the overarching strategy of “preventing disease importation and domestic resurgence” and the general policy of “dynamic zero-COVID”, and providing guidance for airports and airlines on carrying out regular COVID-19 prevention and control so as to make contributions to coordinating disease prevention and control with social and economic development.

The Guideline (Ninth Edition) was developed based on the previous eight editions and in accordance with the ninth edition of Protocol on Prevention and Control of COVID-19 issued by the Joint Prevention and Control Mechanism of the State Council, taking into account the previous experience and effective practices of China’s civil aviation in the disease prevention and control, and the developments of COVID-19.

The Guideline (Ninth Edition) further optimizes and upgrades disease prevention and control measures with more details on the basis of the eighth edition. First, it provides more details about the management of international/regional flight crew members stationed abroad, regulates the normalized disease prevention and control measures adopted by airports which operate domestic flights, classification and categorization of crew members and the work procedures inside and outside the closed-loop, and makes specific requirements to prevent front-line personnel getting heatstroke. Second, it optimizes quarantine requirements for crew members flying inbound flights and for crew members’ protection abroad, adjusting the centralized quarantine and health monitoring measures for flight crews according to the categories of duty. It also introduces classified and area-based management of imported goods. Third, it upgrades the classification standards for risk levels of international flights and strengthens in-flight disease prevention and control by setting up clean areas for flight crews, increasing frequency of lavatory disinfection and so on.