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Air Astana awarded APEX Diamond status for Covid prevention
Kazakhstan carrier Air Astana is the first airline from the CIS region to successfully pass an APEX audit, after being awarded Diamond status.
It attained the standard for minimising and preventing the spread of Covid-19 during flights.
The APEX audit was developed in collaboration with SimpliFlying and covers categories including pre-departure testing of passengers and crew, contact tracing of infected passengers, ground handling, precautions during a flight and the quality of pre-flight cleaning.
The audit evaluated compliance of mandatory sanitary rules.
Air Astana flight attendants replace their face masks every two hours, sanitize hands before and during inflight service, and ensure passengers do not change seats.
Due to the pandemic, onboard cleaning procedures have also changed dramatically.
Now, every surface in the cabin and in the galley are now decontaminated prior to every flight.
In order to promote passenger health safety, SimpliFlying has established a working group consisting of medical and scientific staff, who will examine recent research to futher combat the spread of the Covid-19 virus.
"The impact of the pandemic on global air transport is without precedent and whilst airlines remain extremely safe to fly based upon governmental review and Covid-19 requirements, We are delighted to be the first airline in the CIS region to have achieved the Diamond status, the highest level attainable," said Margaret Phelan, Vice-President of In-flight Services.
Other airlines that have undergone the APEX audit include Turkish Airlines, Qatar, United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Etihad and Singapore Airlines.
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