Flying in times of corona is - apart from the obligation to wear masks or adequate protection - not very different from the "good old days". Although the airlines and airports outdo each other with prayer-wheel-like media releases about the important measures that have been taken for safe travel, in practice it is more chaos that reigns.

Although passengers at many airports are made aware of the distance rules by means of loudspeaker announcements, posters, screen displays and floor markings, these are subjectively perceived by a vast majority of passengers to be ignored. You can see queues at the check-in counters, at the security controls and of course at the gates, where the trolley case provides a maximum of a few centimeters “safety distance”. From one meter - as recommended in Austria - or even 1,5 meters - as suggested in Germany - absolutely no trace. As a rule, airport security personnel do not intervene, but rather take note of the travelers' collective ignorance.

At some airports, such as Stuttgart, “middle seats” on benches that are used for waiting were blocked with stickers. However, since there are no thumbtacks, all spaces - including the “blocked” ones, of course - are used quickly. At other airports, such as Vienna, some gates have no floor markings and no seating at all.

The fact that floor stickers do not help travelers keep their distance is due to the fact that they display a “who cares” attitude and simply ignore it. Regardless of which airline name can be read on the fuselage of the aircraft, customers are not at all interested in the fact that they should actually keep their distance in the gangways, apron buses and when boarding and deboarding. As always, people stand close together and instead of row by row, get out with the usual chaos principle.

But both airports and airlines really encourage non-compliance with the distances, because instead of only having to board the aircraft when the aircraft is ready for boarding, passengers are crammed into the gangway, as in times before Corona, and are supposed to stay there. Ten minutes, twenty minutes, even 25 minutes in the heat, in bad air, close together. There are floor markings, but of course they are ignored. No, rather completely unnecessary crowding takes place - as if it would go faster ...

The individual states also cause confusion, because an absurd patchwork of immigration bureaucracy has now emerged. For example, if you travel between Malta and Austria, between Germany and Austria vv, no documents, advance notice or barcodes are required. It looks very different when you want to enter certain regions of Italy, Greece, UK, Spain and other countries. Online pre-registration is required here. Other countries, including Malta, require completed paper forms. But this is exactly where the problem is, because the airlines insistently point out the necessity of completing the formalities, but many passengers ignore this blankly. True to the motto: "If Mr. and Mrs. Austrians want to go on vacation, you don't have to do that."

For example, Ryanair offers the forms for download at web check-in and indicates in red letters that they must be filled out at boarding, otherwise boarding may be refused. At the check-in counter, the forms are given out in paper form, but a not inconsiderable number of travelers throw the forms into the next best rubbish bin. It goes without saying that the boarding staff does not check whether every passenger has the completed forms with them.

After landing, the chaos is perfect. Very few travelers had the documentation with them and anyone who does not have the completed forms is not allowed to get out. Of course, the ground handling company has to help out with forms first, because Lauda did not have them on board. Now the passengers have the appropriate papers in hand, but no ballpoint pens, which delays everything again. “Mr and Mrs Austrians” do not look to themselves to blame, of course, because it would be far too easy to deal with the bureaucracy at home and just hand in the forms when getting out, no, you would rather become extremely unfriendly to the crew and try to blame them to blame for everything. The failure lies more with the traveler himself, possibly in the fact that a clear NOTAM was disregarded and the existence of the completed forms was not checked during boarding. The passengers were standing close together anyway, maybe with a check or the last chance “fill in now or don't get on” even more distance would have arisen, who knows.

But there is also the completely opposite case and Wizzair has recently sent forms without being asked by e-mail, on which a home quarantine must be approved, even though the country from which the entry into Austria is on the “green list” and therefore no paperwork at all necessary is. The low-cost airline seems to be overwhelmed by this, but threatens that boarding can be refused if the completed form is not carried with you. If you fly from a country that is on the “green list”, it can be turned into a paper airplane after boarding without any consequences. Nobody will claim the form in Austria. However, if you come from a state that is on the “red list”, it is very much needed. If the country in which the place of departure is located has been put on the “black list”, the question does not arise, because the flight is then officially prohibited and does not take place.

The Eurowings staff also exercise German thoroughness between Germany and Austria and in an absolutely unnecessary manner. It is not necessary to fill out a locator form or a quarantine declaration if you want to enter Austria from the Federal Republic of Germany. But does not prevent the ground staff in Stuttgart from distributing the locator slip anyway and urgently pointing out that entry into Austria will be denied without it. Of course, the cabin crew also applies pressure and distributes a few ballpoint pens that are passed through the aircraft. Some “rebels” who can read NOTAMs refuse and the crew then reacts correctly: “I don't care, maybe you don't need it after all”. That's right, nobody in Schwechat wants to see the "Wisch" and the army soldiers were eager at the time, close together, busy watching a mobile phone video together. At Eurowings, however, the “chaos” is not a surprise, because a carrier that unnecessarily forced passengers to the counter and the staff there seriously made the advantages of web check-in palatable, or in May only on approach for landing - with two passengers Board - wanting to have noticed that Olbia Airport is closed, a crash course for reading and understanding NOTAMs would be money well spent.

It may have been formulated harshly in part, but our own experiences and perceptions of the last few weeks in terms of “flying in times of corona” simply show two clear images: The airlines and the passengers are completely overwhelmed with the patchwork of different bureaucracy conditions collectively, nothing matters. When in doubt, the flight attendant is to blame for everything, but you see yourself somewhere between a celebrity, a diplomat and a king, for whom everything does not apply. It is actually absolutely surprising that the masks are worn well, almost without exception. But this shows that at least there is still hope.

The EU members must finally agree on uniform conditions and uniform bureaucracy. The airlines are then also able to query this at the web check-in or at the counter and make it available to the authorities on paper and digitally. It could be so simple, but the political leaders seem to prefer the patchwork quilt.

Airlines should crack down on non-compliance with the rules and refuse to board passengers who simply do not want to deal with current regulations and ignore everything. Perhaps you will then learn that it is not the airline but the traveler who is responsible for meeting the entry requirements. And finally, the appeal to all those who do not adhere to distances and regulations: Bear in mind that aviation is always the scapegoat for problems and you can as soon as politics prohibit the use of routes under the pretext of the corona numbers don't look at all. It is quite possible that the “who cares” attitude can also lead to aviation being put back on the ground or payload restrictions being issued. Most carriers can then no longer afford that and then the vacation flight will no longer work.