Thailand and Vietnam have further tightened restrictions on domestic flights into and out of areas severely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT) says in an 18 July statement that it will require local airlines to suspend commercial passenger flights to and from “dark red” zones, classified as having the highest infection risk, starting 21 July, in line with travel restrictions imposed on these provinces. Thirteen provinces have been classified as “dark red” zones and these are Bangkok, Chachoengsao, Chonburi, Nakhon Pathom, Nonthaburi, Narathiwat, Pathum Thani, Pattani, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya, Yala, Songkhla, Samut Prakan and Samut Sakhon. Exceptions will be made for regions with a tourism-oriented “sandbox” initiative, as well as emergency or technical landings, and other CAAT-authorised flights. Outside of the “dark red” provinces, other flights are capped at 50% passenger capacity to account for social distancing. In response to the tightened measures, Bangkok Airways announced on 18 July that it will temporarily suspend its Bangkok-Samui service from 21 July and postpone the resumption of several domestic routes from Bangkok, originally scheduled for 1 August, to Chiang Mai, Phuket, Sukhothai, Lampang and Trat. However, the airline will continue to operate its special Bangkok-Koh Samui route for vaccinated international passengers under the “Samui Plus” scheme as well as its Samui-Phuket route under the “Phuket Sandbox” scheme. Thai AirAsia previously announced it would suspend all scheduled domestic flights from 12 July until the end of the month. Meanwhile, the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) has issued a 18 July notice to Vietnamese airlines to suspend all domestic flights into or out of southern provinces. Airlines will be able to operate from Hanoi one flight a day, to Can Tho and Phu Quoc, while flights from Ho Chi Minh City to the central regions including Danang, Buon Ma Thuot, Quy Nhon and Cam Ranh will be maintained at one flight of not more than 200 seats per day, as per CAAV's 8 July notice. The regulator has also proposed to cut the number of seats on daily round-trip flights between Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. The CAAV adds that the restrictions will not apply to cargo flights.

Fastjet Zimbabwe recently took the delivery of its third Embraer ERJ145 aircraft, which was introduced into commercial service on 16 July. The low-cost airline says it has deployed the 50-seater aircraft, which is leased from ACIA Aero and is registered as Z-FJH, on the Harare-Bulawayo route. The additional aircraft represents Fastjet's continued commitment to the Embraer aircraft family. It is expected to grow the airline's capabilities and open up new market opportunities. The ERJ145 offers capabilities that are compatible with the Zimbabwean and South African regional market needs. Fastjet says it has a strong commitment to serving the customers and will be introducing new services to address the current and future needs of its customers.

Low Covid-19 vaccination rates in Africa mean inoculation cannot be a prerequisite for international travel, in the view of RwandAir chief executive Yvonne Makolo. Speaking during a CAPA Live event on 14 July, Makolo said: “In the US and Europe…. we’re hearing a lot of calls to allow only people who are vaccinated [to travel]. This is a concern for us, because if you have almost the entire African continent not vaccinated, how are people going to travel?” She points out that across the African continent, less than 2% of the population has received at least one vaccine dose so far, which is “very worrying… in terms of the full restart of the industry” in the region. “Given the issue of vaccine inequity, a lot of African countries have not been able to get the vaccines they had hoped for, including Rwanda,” Makolo explains. With that in mind, “we really want to see a situation where we allow people to travel as long as they have a negative Covid [test], and the ones who are vaccinated can be allowed to travel freely [as well]”, Makolo says. Having both options is the “only way we can have some certainty” in terms of the industry restart, she suggests. The price of Covid-19 tests needs to be addressed, Makolo adds, while digital health passports are “complex”, but “given the fact we’ll have to live with Covid for a while, I think it’s the only way to go”. Helpfully, given the lack of access to vaccines in the region, Makolo says “a lot of African countries have managed to contain the pandemic pretty well… including Rwanda”, which means RwandAir is currently able to serve most of its pre-pandemic destinations. Speaking during the same event, the secretary general of the African Airlines Association (AFRAA), Abderahmane Berthe, noted that the World Health Organization had set targets for vaccinations to reach 10% of Africans by September, 40% by December and 70% by mid-2022, as part of a global effort. “Governments need to speed up the rollout of vaccines across the continent,” Berthe says. ”It’s very important that no country is left behind.” Meanwhile, of Qatar Airways’ plan to take a 49% stake in RwandAir, Makolo says the process as been “slowed down a bit because of the pandemic”, but that it remains on track.