El Salvador has imposed a fine on Spirit Airlines for boarding a passenger with a positive Covid-19 PCR test, the country’s director general of the country’s Office of Migration and Foreign Affairs, Ricardo Cucalon, said on Monday.
The flight was going from Houston to San Salvador on Thursday.
Spirit has received a fine of about $ 6,000, Cucalon said, in statements to local media on Monday.
“I call the airline to solve the problem. A $ 6,000 fine doesn’t solve it. The issue is the risk to which countless people were exposed, “said Cucalon.
About 58 passengers who traveled on the same flight have been notified, as well as the country’s Ministry of Health, as it is up to them to determine the best way to contain the potential spread of the virus.
What happened: On Thursday, a Honduran citizen was allowed to board a flight from Houston, Texas, to San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador, where immigration officials discovered the passenger could travel with a positive test result. PCR for Covid-19.
Spirit Airlines told CNN on Saturday that it is investigating how the passenger was able to board the plane “despite passing checks” and will take appropriate action. The airline stated that they have established protocols to meet the requirements required by each country they travel to.
El Salvador requires all passengers traveling to the country to present a negative PCR test performed within 72 hours prior to travel.
The country resumed international flights in September after closing them for six months due to the coronavirus pandemic.