3-step Fever Check from Terminal Entry→Departure hall→Boarding gate
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT, Minister KIM Hyun-mee) and Incheon International Airport Corporation (IIAC, CEO Bon-Hwan KOO) announced that a 3-step infection prevention measure will be provisionally adopted from March 5.
This decision was made at a Central Disaster Safety Response HQ meeting presided by the Prime Minister on March 5(Thu), and will be fully effective from 9 a.m. March 9(Mon), to respond to widening entry restrictions on South Korean citizens due to the spreading COVID-19 cases in Korea, based on dialogues with relevant authorities including quarantine agencies.
From March 5, thermal imaging cameras and non-contact thermometers will be used to check temperature of passengers departing through Incheon Airport.
For step 1 and 2, if high temperature is detected through the camera, the relevant passenger will be checked once more with non-contact thermometer.
First, when entering passenger terminal, passengers will be checked for fever at the incoming gate, and in case of body temperature of 37.5℃ or higher, the passenger will be guided to the disease control office for further basic inquiries.
Next, at the departure hall, temperature will be checked again before proceeding to the security check, and if a passenger has a body temperature of 37.5℃ or higher, and plans to fly to a destination with entry restriction regarding high body temperature, the passenger will be guided to airline staff for ticket cancellation.
In case of the U.S., passengers with a body temperature of 38℃ or higher are denied boarding (Transportation Security Agency guidelines)
Finally, for routes with request by the destination country, fever check will be conducted by airlines, and for such routes, passengers detected with fever over threshold may be denied boarding.
Currently implemented for flights headed to the US, China, and the UAE
“Through this measure, we will build a water-tight containment system covering the whole process from airport entry to departure, providing safe air transport service to both Korean and international travelers and hope that this effort will notably contribute to making known the safety and reliability of the airport of Korea to the international society,” Mr. KIM Sang-do, Deputy Minister for Aviation Policy remarked.
He added, “Furthermore, the purpose of fever check before departure is to sustain the convenience of our people when flying to other nations such as the U.S., and as it may take some time during fever check process, I would like to ask passengers to arrive at the airport earlier than usual.”
“We will reinforce Incheon Airport, which is the gateway to the Republic of Korea, as the COVID-19 Free Airport, and invest our utmost efforts to provide a safe airport environment for the whole departure and arrival process,” stated the CEO of IIAC.