In a similar move to Emirates, Etihad is now offering passengers free medical cover for Covid-19-related expenses.
The national airline of the UAE is introducing Covid-19 insurance as part of its Etihad Wellness programme, which aims to keep passengers safe when flying during the pandemic.
The policy is being offered through AXA and is designed to boost people’s confidence in travelling during the pandemic.
“As more countries start opening their borders, we are making it as easy as possible for our guests to plan their next trip, hassle free,” said Duncan Bureau, senior vice president of sales and distribution at Etihad.
Any travellers who are diagnosed with Covid-19 will automatically be covered for related medical expenses or quarantine costs when flying with the airline.
“The safety, health, and well-being of our guests and employees is our top priority, during and beyond the flight. The introduction of global Covid-19 insurance, in partnership with AXA, builds on stringent measures already in place as part of our Etihad Wellness programme, championed by our Wellness Ambassadors,” Bureau said.
How long is the cover valid for?
Travellers who are booked to fly with Etihad between now and December 31, 2020 will qualify for Covid-19 cover. The policy is valid worldwide for 31 days from four hours before passengers depart on their first Etihad flight.
Cover ceases when travellers return to their home country, or after 31 days – whichever happens first.
What should I do if I get sick and want to use Etihad’s Covid-19 cover?
Travellers diagnosed with Covid-19 while on their trip must contact the airline’s Covid-19 assistance team.
There is a dedicated hotline for both Arabic and English speakers and someone will be available 24 hours a day to take calls. Travellers who want to use Etihad’s coverage must contact the assistance team as early as possible, because no expenses will be reimbursed for medical care provided before this.
The hotline numbers are +971 4 507 4007 (for English) and +971 4 507 4002 (for Arabic).
What is covered by Etihad’s Covid-19 assistance?
The policy has generous limits, with up to €150,000 (Dh651,000) in medical costs covered, and up to €100 per day for quarantine costs for 14 days.
It also covers medical repatriation due to Covid-19 for the insured person and one travel companion, plus any accompanying children.
In the worst-case scenario that a Covid-19 infection results in death, Etihad will cover the costs of repatriating a body back to the country of departure or to another specified location, as well as reimbursing up to €1,500 in funeral costs.
What’s not covered by the policy?
All passengers flying with Etihad must have a negative Covid-19 test before travelling, but the policy does not cover the cost of this process.
Other exclusions apply if travellers opt to visit a country, area or event to which travel has been advised against by the authorities.
Cruises are excluded from the coverage, so if you’re flying with Etihad to somewhere and plan to get on a cruise ship, you’ll need to have an alternative form of medical protection in place for the period you’ll be at sea.
The policy also excludes travelling in, to or through Iran, Syria, North Korea, Cuba, Venezuela, Crimea and Sevastopol.
In August, Emirates was the first airline in the world to offer travellers free Covid-19 cover.
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Price: base / as tested: Dh382,000
Engine: 5.6-litre V8
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 428hp @ 5,800rpm
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The specs: 2018 Audi Q5/SQ5
Price, base: Dh183,900 / Dh249,000
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-finals, second leg:
Liverpool (0) v Barcelona (3), Tuesday, 11pm UAE
Game is on BeIN Sports
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
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The specs
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
'Young girls thinking of big ideas'
Words come easy for aspiring writer Afra Al Muhairb. The business side of books, on the other hand, is entirely foreign to the 16-year-old Emirati. So, she followed her father’s advice and enroled in the Abu Dhabi Education Council’s summer entrepreneurship course at Abu Dhabi University hoping to pick up a few new skills.
“Most of us have this dream of opening a business,” said Afra, referring to her peers are “young girls thinking of big ideas.”
In the three-week class, pupils are challenged to come up with a business and develop an operational and marketing plan to support their idea. But, the learning goes far beyond sales and branding, said teacher Sonia Elhaj.
“It’s not only about starting up a business, it’s all the meta skills that goes with it -- building self confidence, communication,” said Ms Elhaj. “It’s a way to coach them and to harness ideas and to allow them to be creative. They are really hungry to do this and be heard. They are so happy to be actually doing something, to be engaged in creating something new, not only sitting and listening and getting new information and new knowledge. Now they are applying that knowledge.”
Afra’s team decided to focus their business idea on a restaurant modelled after the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Each level would have a different international cuisine and all the meat would be halal. The pupils thought of this after discussing a common problem they face when travelling abroad.
“Sometimes we find the struggle of finding halal food, so we just eat fish and cheese, so it’s hard for us to spend 20 days with fish and cheese,” said Afra. “So we made this tower so every person who comes – from Africa, from America – they will find the right food to eat.”
rpennington@thenational.ae
Specs
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The Penguin
Starring: Colin Farrell, Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz
Creator: Lauren LeFranc
Rating: 4/5
The biog
Name: Abeer Al Bah
Born: 1972
Husband: Emirati lawyer Salem Bin Sahoo, since 1992
Children: Soud, born 1993, lawyer; Obaid, born 1994, deceased; four other boys and one girl, three months old
Education: BA in Elementary Education, worked for five years in a Dubai school
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
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Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
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