Story and photos by Dr. Michael Lim The Travelling Gourmet TM
Copyright all rights reserved
The indomitable and irrepressible Travelling Gourmet TM tells you about…
MARVELLOUS Singapore Airlines, the world’s best airline!
The Diamond rating is the highest level
attainable in the APEX Health Safety powered by SimpliFlying audit of global airlines.
The audit was jointly conducted by industry body Airline Passe
Experience Association (APEX) and aviation strategy firm SimpliFlying. A rigourous
quantitative 58-point checklist covered 10 categories. These included testing,
tracing, on-the-ground procedures, in-flight measures and partnerships to further
enhance safety integrity.
The diamond rating marks at least 200 points above the minimum gold standard determined by APEX and SimpliFlying for passenger safety and well-being. Standards are based on independently verified,validated, and certified airline passenger health safety measures.
Yeoh Phee Teik, Senior Vice President Customer Experience, Singapore Airlines,
remarked: “Early in the Covid-19 pandemic, we undertook a comprehensive review of
our health and safety measures together with our partners and regulators, in
consultation with medical experts, and by taking on board customer feedback.
“Our teams deep-dived into many check points along the end-to-end customer
journey. We reinforced existing procedures where necessary, enhanced some of
them, introduced new measures to supplement them, and used digital technologies
to complement them and support a more seamless travel experience. Singapore Airlines is renowned for our industry-leading product and service, and we will continue to ensure that world-class health and safety standards remain an integral part of our brand promise.”
CEO of APEX, Dr. Joe Leader explained: “Singapore Airlines’ commitment to customer
well-being shines via a contactless journey management bolstered by best-in-class
onboard hygiene. As a Diamond health safety certified airline, Singapore Airlines
has gone a step beyond investing in their passengers’ wellness by implementing
the latest advances in testing and health passport technology.”
Shashank Nigam, CEO of SimpliFlying, added: “Singapore Airlines has raised the bar
for health safety standards in the industry with initiatives such as near-touch checkin kiosks, mobile notifications for baggage delays and digitisation of in-flight menus
and magazines. Taking hospital-grade measures in ensuring health safety will help
bolster trust among travellers.”
Back when no masks were necessary and we could admire their beauty…
Health and safety when travelling with Singapore Airlines
SIA has introduced comprehensive health and safety measures to ensure the wellbeing of our customers and staff members. Pre-departure measures include basic passenger health assessments, as well as contactless services such as mobile check-in and digital in-flight menus.
SIA regularly applies anti-microbial coating on high-touch surfaces including areas
in the lounges, as well as various sections of the aircraft cabin including the
lavatories. On selected aircraft, electrostatic spraying machines containing a
disinfecting agent are used to sanitise the cabin.
During the flight, SIA requires all customers and staff members to wear masks unless
they are eating or drinking. Cabin crew are also required to wear goggles, as well
as gloves when necessary, while interacting with our customers. They are also
required to be in protective gowns on flights from certain sectors.
While all physical newspapers and magazines have been removed, SIA offers
customers a free e-Library via their personal tablets and mobile devices that
provides access to more than 1,000 global publications. Meal services have been
simplified to reduce contact, but SIA has managed to reintroduce favourites such as
its satay and garlic bread for premium classes within one tray.
All SIA aircraft are equipped with High Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filters, which
remove more than 99.9% of particles including airborne viruses and bacteria in the
cabin. The cabin air is refreshed every two to three minutes throughout the flight. This is a very important point because I well remember that in the days before the horrid china virus wilfully spread by China worldwide, when you went on a long flight to London or Paris of 12 to 13 hours, and there were some people coughing away in the cabin,,,when you arrived you would come down with a cough and cold too! This happened to me and my family a few times, until we started using a virucidal gargle before and during and after the flight. Then all was well!
Post-flight, headsets, headrest covers, pillow covers, bedsheets and blankets are
replaced. Linens are washed at high temperatures to disinfect them after every use.
The Travelling Gourmet TM says: Keep calm and carry on flying with SIA!
The Travelling Gourmet 