Safe Travel With Austrian Airlines

Your next flight is imminent and you want to travel as safely and carefree as possible? Our step-by-step instructions show you how:

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When Booking the Flight

  • Flights can be booked as usual via austrian.com and our service centre. A current list of all destinations can be found here.
  • Our free of charge rebooking option ensures the highest possible flexibility for your new booking and your next flight. Until the end of May 2021, you can easily rebook all tickets, regardless of the fare you have booked, free of charge. This offer applies to short, medium and long-haul flights
  • To be able to inform you just in time and in case of any flight irregularities, we offer you a free automated information service. To use this service, we ask you to provide your current mobile phone number or e-mail address when booking your flight.
  • In addition, you can easily create an Austrian profile during the booking process, if you have not already done so. The profile makes it easier for you to access your bookings and the current flight status. In addition, we can contact you in case of flight irregularities via the given mobile phone number and e-mail address. Our newsletter will also keep you regularly informed about changes in our flight schedule and current offers. You can also register for an Austrian profile at any time at no charge.
  • Please inform yourself about the current entry restrictions of the respective destinations before you book and depart. For more information on entry restrictions and travel warnings, please visit our platform regarding travel regulations, the website of your local authority or the IATA Travel Centre.

While Packing the Suitcase

  • We kindly ask you to bring along items such as several protective masks (so you can switch, once they get damp), disinfectants or gloves by yourself.
  • Since September 1, 2020 an exemption from the obligation to wear a FFP2-mask during the flight for medical reasons is only possible if a medical certificate is presented on a form provided by Austrian Airlines. The medical certificate can be downloaded here.
  • Many authorities and airports have introduced restrictions on the amount and size of carry on luggage due to the current situation. The less baggage you carry-on will result in a reduction in waiting times and less follow-up checks at the security checkpoint. The boarding and de-boarding process will be faster and frictionless.
  • Please inform yourself about the local regulations of your place of departure and the related airport. At many airports, it is now compulsory to wear FFP2-masks.
  • For an ideal travel preparation, we also recommend downloading our travel checklist. This list helps you to be perfectly prepared for your upcoming trip.
  • Before your flight, register at your local authorities so that the authorities can quickly contact you in the event of travel warnings.
  • Please inform yourself in advance about the entry and quarantine regulations of your destination.
  • Please note: since January 15, 2021, there is a mandatory online registration ("Pre-Travel Clearance") for all travelers before entering Austria. Individual exceptions to the registration requirement exist for regular commuters, for transit travelers or for persons who enter Austria for family reasons that are particularly worthy of consideration and cannot be postponed. Detailed information on Pre-Travel Clearance, as well as the required form which must be completed prior to entry, can be found on the Ministry of Social Affairs website.

At the Check-in

  • To avoid possible contact points at the airport, we recommend our web check-in via app or website.
  • Check your bags with our contactless self-service kiosks.
  • In order to make handling easier, we ask you to check in your hand luggage free of charge. Every piece of hand baggage that complies with the regulations may be checked in at no charge - even with a light tariff.

During the Airport Transfer

  • Up-to-date information on arrivals and departures can be found on the Vienna International Airport website.
  • Please take note of the current possibilities for travelling to the airport by public transport. Further information can be found on the website of the City Airport Train, the Vienna Airport Lines and on the website of ÖBB.
  • If you are travelling individually, you will find more detailed information about the parking facilities at Vienna International Airport here.
  • If you arrive the day before departure, please check the opening status of your hotel.

At Vienna International Airport

  • Wearing FFP2-masks at Vienna International Airport is currently mandatory. We therefore ask you to have your FFP2-mask ready upon arrival (as of March 01, 2021).
  • At the check-in, boarding and information desks you will find various plexiglass-constructions as well as exhaustive floor markings, to ensure that the minimum distance is kept.
  • In order to guarantee a safe start for your journey, cleaning activities are being stepped up. Handrails, door handles, sanitary facilities and self-service check-in kiosks are cleaned more often and the filters of the ventilation systems at the airport are changed more frequently.
  • Disinfection dispensers are available throughout the airport.
  • The local supply of food at Vienna International Airport will continue. Supermarkets are open as usual. The Austrian Business Lounge in the Schengen area of Terminal 3, the duty-free shops at the F and G gates and one restaurant each at the F and G gates are also open (as of March 01, 2021).

During Boarding

  • On our flights, our "boarding by groups" process allows you to board your aircraft even faster and with the necessary distance. This prevents all passengers from boarding at the same time. Please do not board until your boarding group is called. You will find information about your boarding group on your boarding card.
  • In order to avoid queues on the boarding bridge before entering the aircraft, there may be short interruptions. This allows all passengers to board the aircraft in an orderly manner with sufficient distance.
  • At Vienna International Airport you can also take advantage of contactless boarding through the Quick Boarding Gates. A scanner will read your boarding pass.

During the Flight

  • Wear your FFP2-mask at all times while on board, just as our crew members do. The FFP2-mask has to cover mouth and nose and should not have a valve. Please note that on Lufthansa Group Airlines flights, face shields may not be worn as a replacement for nose and mouth protection, as they only block droplets emitted directly to the front, still allowing air flow out the sides. Thus, they provide non-comparable protection. Also, FFP2/FFP3 masks with valves are not permitted on board our aircraft - without a valve they are of course permitted to conduct.
  • When selecting or allocating seats, passengers who do not live in the same household should be distributed as widely as possible throughout the aircraft. However, no guest will be rejected in order to keep the neighbouring seat free.
  • Our air filter supplies a complete exchange of fresh air approximately every three minutes. The resulting excellent air quality, in combination with a FFP2-mask, offers so much protection that it is not essential to maintain minimum distances to passangers in neighboring seats.
  • The frequency and intensity of cabin cleaning have been increased. This applies in particular to tables, armrests, seat belts, toilets and door handles.
  • In order to minimize contact between people on board, our current in-flight service has been adapted and simplified.
  • In the toilets, you will also find sufficient water and soap for thoroughly washing your hands.
  • Where possible, we kindly ask you to keep your distance to your fellow passengers on board. This applies especially when boarding/disembarking and to the waiting areas in front of the toilets.

After the Flight

  • Please continue to collect your luggage at the designated luggage conveyor belt.
  • Please inform yourself in advance about the entry and quarantine regulations of your destination.
  • At various airports, including Vienna International Airport, a health check (such as measurement of body temperature) is currently carried out when arriving at the destination.
  • At the moment, those arriving in Vienna also have the opportunity to be tested for COVID-19. The results of both the PCR test and the rapid antigen test are available within a few hours. Registration and information can be found here.

FAQs

The suspension of priority boarding is only intended for short-haul flights. For long-haul flights, we still offer priority boarding.

Our system automatically assigns passengers to seats with the most possible distant spacing (depending on the occupancy rate). However, it is still possible to choose any preferences for seating during web check-in (e.g. as far in the front as possible, etc.).

The original regulation of the Lufthansa Group Airlines to keep the neighbouring seat free in Economy and Premium Economy Class is no longer applicable, as there is sufficient health protection by wearing masks.

The airline association IATA has also spoken out against keeping middle seats empty in aircraft. Instead, passengers should wear masks during the flight as a measure to reduce the risk of infection.

Due to the current occupancy factors, however, seats should be distributed as widely as possible throughout the cabin.

A negative Covid-19 test result is not required by the airline, but instead depends on the entry regulations of the authorities at the destinations concerned.
Make sure that you have all the necessary documentation (incl. a Covid-19 test result) to hand at the start of your journey for your entire trip (all the transfer locations and your destination country). Depending on the official regulations, the airline can refuse carriage if a passenger does not meet the entry regulations for the transfer/destination country.
You will find all the latest information about entry regulations for your destination here.

At Austrian Airlines, there will be no change in the hand baggage regulations according to current information. To facilitate handling, we ask our passengers to check in their hand baggage free of charge.

Since September 29, 2020 the Austrian Business Lounge in the Schengen area of Terminal 3 is open again.

The entire airport/terminal area is available for use, including all catering facilities that are already open. The waiting areas at the gates can also be used to wait for departure

We have reduced the choice of food and beverages. In this way, we want to reduce the touchpoints and the duration of contact between crews and passengers. Drinks can always be refilled in a new glass or cup.

Whether and when the accustomed "full service" will return also depends on the overall COVID-19 situation. The domestic catering sector regulations are certainly the main guideline.

The guidelines for food production are compliant with the legal hygiene protocols.

The Business Class Service remains mostly unchanged. Only service components have been adapted to protect our customers and our crew.

We have introduced a mask requirement onboard our aircraft for the duration of the entire flight (exceptions: medical reasons and children under 6 years of age). From September 1, 2020 an exemption from the obligation to wear a FFP2-mask during the flight for medical reasons will only be possible if a medical certificate is presented on a form provided by the airline. The medical certificate can be downloaded here.

This also applies to all other airlines in the Lufthansa Group. Austrian Airlines is thus following the official regulations of numerous European countries in which the wearing of a mouth and nose protection or FFP2-mask in public is now mandatory.

Since 25 January 2021, FFP2-masks without a valve are compulsory on board all Austrian Airlines flights. This means that fabric masks, scarves, visors or community masks are no longer permitted. However, higher classified masks, such as FFP3 masks without a valve, can also be worn. According to the new regulation, passengers between 6 and 14 years of age as well as pregnant women can travel with normal mouth-nose protection; children under 6 years of age continue to be exempt from the mask-wearing obligation. Passengers who cannot wear a mask for health reasons have to present a negative Covid 19 test, which should not be older than 48 hours at the scheduled start of the journey, and a medical certificate on an Austrian Airlines form. The form can be downloaded here.

Face shields may not be worn on our flights as a replacement for a FFP2-mask, as they only catch the droplets that are expelled directly forward and allow the breath to escape on the side. They, therefore, do not represent comparable protection.

We ask our passengers to bring their own FFP2-masks.

Austrian Airlines resumed flight operations on the 15th of June 2020. You can view our current flight schedule at https://www.austrian.com/at/en/travel-coronatimes

Vienna Airport is open. Due to the reduced number of flights on offer, all handling activities are temporarily consolidated in Terminal 3. You can find further information directly at: https://www.viennaairport.com.