Negative antigen or RT-PCR test to be mandatory for boarding Smartwings and Czech Airlines aircraft as of 5 March 2021

March 2, 2021
Smartwings and Czech Airlines are introducing new on-board measures to keep air travel safe during the coronavirus pandemic. As of Friday, 5 March 2021, passengers will be allowed to board Smartwings and Czech Airlines planes to and from the Czech Republic only with a hardcopy certificate of a negative antigen (rapid) or RT-PCR test from an accredited laboratory. The result of an antigen test must not be older than 24 hours and the result of an RT-PCR test must not be older than 72 hours prior to boarding. Apart from that, passengers will need to meet all the criteria for entry to the respective destination country.

There is an exception for children under 5 years of age and passengers who present a written certificate in English or Czech from a physician residing in the Czech Republic or another EU member state confirming that the passenger is free from any clinical symptoms of COVID-19 and demonstrably recovered from the COVID-19 disease, spent the required time in isolation under regulations applicable in the Czech Republic or another EU member state upon a positive RT-PCR test, and that the first positive RT-PCR test is not older than 90 calendar days (the certificate must include a stamp, identity of the physician, and phone number; a template is available on the website of the Czech Ministry of Health); other exemptions are listed in the relevant decree by the Ministry of Health of the Czech Republic.

Smartwings and Czech Airlines adopted stringent health safety measures on board their aircraft right at the onset of the pandemic. Smartwings airplanes are equipped with HEPA air filters that capture 99.97% of viruses and bacteria. Before and after every flight, the interior of each aircraft undergoes a thorough disinfection procedure in compliance with the most stringent standards. Passengers are required to wear respirators when boarding the plane and throughout the flight. When boarding and disembarking, passengers must keep 2-meter distance from each other, and only contactless payments are allowed on board.

Smartwings currently operates flights from Prague to Málaga, Spain; the Canary Islands including Tenerife, Gran Canaria, and Fuerteventura; Mallorca; Madeira; and Hurghada and Marsa Alam, Egypt. Czech Airlines, a member of Smartwings Group, currently operates flights to Paris, Amsterdam, Stockholm, Kyiv, and Moscow.