Capital A (formerly AirAsia) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Tony Fernandes called on the Thai government to reduce Covid-19 travel requirements for international tourists in a bid to stimulate the tourism sector.
According to the report, he urged the government to consider setting aside the second Covid-19 reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) test for visitors on the 5th day of their stay under the Test & Go scheme.
This is because the argument is that most tourists who enter Thailand are from Asian countries and the need to do a second test is more expensive than a flight ticket.
He added that the government should consider canceling the requirement to apply for a Thailand Pass and buy travel insurance because for him the airline can do the job of checking all documents including vaccination certificates for tourists who want to enter Thailand.
Under the Test & Go program, tourists who have been vaccinated must apply for a Thailand Pass before entering the country and they must purchase medical insurance worth approximately $ US50,000 or RM209,375 as well as perform a Covid-19 RT-PCR test within 72 hours. before the trip.
In addition, tourists also need to pre-book the hotel's SHA Extra test and perform the Covid-19 RT-PCR test on the first and 5th day.
Meanwhile, Tony is optimistic that Thailand will become a major tourist destination if his government reduces travel requirements.
Before Covid-19 hit, Thailand recorded a tourist volume of nearly 40 million and by 2020 that figure dropped to 6.7 million.
Therefore, he stated that if the Thai government reduces the travel requirements, AirAsia is ready to provide flights there.
