- New Zealand authorities reported on Tuesday a new case of COVID-19 in a worker at Auckland airport, but said it does not yet require a pause in quarantine-free travel with Australia
- The joint travel bubble opened on Monday after both countries had closed their borders to non-citizens and permanent residents in March last year
- Health authorities in New Zealand are now liaising with their Australian counterparts, with no initial indication that the bubble would be suspended
- The infected airport worker was fully vaccinated and had been cleaning planes arriving from countries with known outbreaks
- Qantas is expected to ramp up flights between the countries to about 200 each week, while Air New Zealand quadrupled its flights to 30
New Zealand authorities reported on Tuesday a new case of COVID-19 in a worker at Auckland airport, but said it does not yet require a pause in quarantine-free travel with Australia.
The joint travel bubble opened on Monday after both countries had closed their borders to non-citizens and permanent residents in March last year.
“When we opened, on both sides, we of course knew we would continue to have cases connected to our border,” said New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.
“We accept that’s going to be part of our journey together, I think Australia accepts that.”
Health authorities in New Zealand are liaising with their Australian counterparts, Ardern added, with no initial indication that the bubble would be suspended.
The infected airport worker was fully vaccinated and had been cleaning planes arriving from countries with known outbreaks.
They had tested negative on April 12 but returned a positive result on Monday as a result of routine testing. Contact tracing is now underway.
Hundreds of passengers began arriving at airports in Australia and New Zealand at the start of this week, with Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison saying he would also make the trip to New Zealand in the “not too distant future.”
Qantas is expected to ramp up flights between the countries to about 200 each week. Air New Zealand expects to quadrupled its flights to 30, stating its planes flying into New Zealand were 97 per cent full.
Both Morrison and Ardern had previously warned travellers of potential disruptions in the event of a COVID-19 outbreak, but also flagged the possibility of extending quarantine-free travel to other countries in the Pacific when “it is safe to do so.”