Spicejet employee at IGI airport tests positive for coronavirus

An employee of budget-carrier SpiceJet working at New Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport tested positive for coronavirus infection.

The employee last handled SpiceJet cargo flight to Patna from New Delhi on May 3, a source said.

Though the airline's commercial passenger services are shut along with flight services of other carriers due to the lockdown, its cargo operations are going on in full steam.

This is the third case of an employee at the airline contracting coronavirus infection. The airline claims of "diligently following" the guidelines issued by the central government and the World Health Organisation.

"One of our colleagues at SpiceJet has tested positive for COVID-19. He had last reported on duty on May 3 at the Delhi airport," a SpiceJet spokesperson said in a statement to PTI.

As a precautionary measure, all staff who had been in direct contact with him have been asked to self-quarantine by staying at home for the next two weeks, the spokesperson said, adding that all measures are being taken to provide appropriate medical care to him.

Late last month, one of the airline's engineers, who was also working at the IGI Airport in New Delhi was tested positive for COVID-19.

Prior to that in late March, a pilot, working as a First Officer with SpiceJet and who had not operated any international flight in that month was tested coronavirus positive and asked to self-quarantine at home.

"We have been diligently following the guidelines issued by the Government of India and WHO. All our aircraft and our workplaces are being disinfected thoroughly and the disinfectants used are as per the WHO standards," the SpiceJet spokesperson said in the statement on Thursday.