People who want to enter Austria and come from an area that is subject to a travel warning must be in quarantine. This does not apply to passengers who can present a negative PCR test, the acceptance of which must not be older than 72 hours. Furthermore, residents of Austria - regardless of their citizenship - have the opportunity to take the test within 48 hours. If the result is negative, the segregation is ended. So much for the well-known theory, but how does it go in practice?

Basically, you have to distinguish whether the flight is arriving from the Schengen region or a third country. For countries that do not belong to the EU Schengen area, it is quite easy, because there is a mandatory passport control, regardless of the corona pandemic. Immediately in front of the police control station, soldiers of the armed forces take over the control of the documents on behalf of the district authority Bruck an der Leitha (responsible health authority). If you have a negative PCR test, you must show it together with your identification document (passport or identity card). The soldier checks the documents, then returns them and wishes them a nice day.

Important: If you want to enter from an area that is subject to quarantine and can present a negative PCR result that meets the criteria, you do not have to fill out the form that is sent by email by the airline or distributed on board. This is not required.

It is a little different if you are just passing through or if you don't have a negative PCR result. In these cases, the form must be filled out and handed over to the armed forces together with the passport or identity card. The soldiers are very well trained and help out if anything is unclear. If you leave the country directly, for example you only landed in Vienna, but want to go to Bratislava, you have to indicate this on the form. People who live in Austria undertake to quarantine with their signature, but have the option of doing a PCR test within 48 hours at their own expense. If this is negative, the segregation ends.

While arrivals in the non-Schengen area can be checked completely, it is a little more complicated with Schengen flights. These are also checked, but the way they are done differs. There is also a very good reason for this, because entry from many countries, for example Germany, is not subject to quarantine. So there is no noticeable difference, because passport controls do not usually take place. However, the police have the right to carry out a personal check at any location at the airport at any time, regardless of the corona pandemic.

When entering from Schengen countries that are not subject to quarantine, the district authority of Bruck an der Leitha, the armed forces and the police only carry out random checks. These usually take place in such a way that travelers are approached by officials whether they have stayed in Austria or in countries that are not subject to quarantine in the last ten days. However, this procedure also has a weak point: If it is a matter of a passenger who has changed trains in Frankfurt or Munich, for example, coming from Dubai, he can "switch through" unnoticed, even if he is questioned, because unless there is clear evidence, he comes from Germany. The officials are therefore dependent on honest information, but many passengers do not take it very seriously for fear of quarantine. The authorities manage to catch "quarantine cheaters" again and again.

For flights that arrive non-stop from a Schengen area that is subject to quarantine, there is no passport control by the police, but the armed forces check who has to be in quarantine and who does not. Those who only change trains in Vienna should have their boarding pass or, if they have to be picked up at a counter, the booking confirmation with them. Unfortunately, there are also special “wise guys” who think they have to trick the authorities: Tell them that you would only change trains in Vienna and then go through another exit towards the baggage claim. That almost never works, because there are occasional checks, because the local authorities did not swim along on the proverbial noodle soup. Incidentally, such behavior can also have criminal consequences.

Of course there are loopholes everywhere and despite intensive efforts it can happen that in individual cases passengers “switch through”. However, the authorities are not able to access the PNR database for the purpose of health agendas. This is simply not planned and the EU Commission initiated proceedings against Germany in this context. The authorities are therefore reliant on honest information from travelers. Filling the form with false information can result in criminal prosecution. Any adventurous expeditions to evade the controls, too, by the way. Currently, the legal situation in Austria provides that people who have been in an area subject to quarantine in the last ten days must notify this, even if they have changed trains in Frankfurt, for example. Failure to do so can result in a fine.

Criticism of the actions of the domestic authorities is also appropriate, because the “baby elephant” was grossly disregarded in several on-site inspections by Aviation Direct in the controlled area of ​​non-Schengen arrivals. The arriving travelers, in both cases from Kiev-Schuljany, stood close together and distances were not kept. There are far too few floor markings that could be helpful. From a spatial perspective, the location at which these checks are carried out does not appear to be suitable. In times of Corona, more space is needed, but area G (arrival) is very narrow and narrow. There would be more space in the old building, but this is not used. The security staff present, but in particular the officers of the police, the armed forces and / or the BH Bruck an der Leitha could have warned and enforced the observance of the distances and the correct wearing of the MNS masks on the spot. In at least two cases, which have occurred in the past two weeks, this has not been the case. Aviation Direct was there.