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Singapore Airlines (SIA) has scrapped its plan for a"flight to nowhere" following a review of factors including environmental implications and financial viability. Instead, for a limited time, SIA will offer a dining experience on board an A380, conduct tours of its training facilities and provide a home delivery service featuring its first class and business class meals. The announcement, made by the airline in a press release on Tuesday (Sep 29), comes amid unprecedented challenges for Singapore's national carrier after COVID-19 crippled travel demand worldwide. SIA Group reported the first annual net loss in its 48-year history in May and has said it will cut about 4,300 positions,...

Celebrated Indonesian journalist Najwa Shihab gave the country arguably the most iconic takedown of the government’s handling of the COVID-19 crisis by “interviewing” an empty chair. In a video published for her talkshow Mata Najwa on Narasi TV yesterday, Najwa said she had invited Health Minister Terawan Agus Putranto several times for a face-to-face interview regarding his and his ministry’s handling of the crisis. As she said she never got a call back from the minister, what followed was this four-minute video of her in the studio directing her questions to an empty chair where Terawan would have sat. “Why have you disappeared, sir? You rarely appear in...

The Ministry of Health declared on Monday that one of the last two Covid-19 patients had recovered and has been allowed to leave the Khmer Soviet Friendship Hospital. The recovered patient had two successive negative test results. He is a 54-year-old Englishman staying in an apartment in the capital’s Boeung Kak II commune. He had travelled from England with stops in the Netherlands and South Korea before arriving in Cambodia on September 11. The Ministry of Health declared on Monday that one of the last two Covid-19 patients had recovered and has been allowed to leave the Khmer Soviet Friendship Hospital. The recovered patient had two successive negative test results. He is a...

A commonly used arthritis drug is to be trialled with care home residents who have Covid, after it was observed that those taking it for their joint pains were less likely to end up in hospital with the virus. Older people in care homes, who often have some degree of dementia, tend not to do well in hospital, where they become more confused and may pick up infections. The trial will break new ground by giving the drug to people at care homes, where they can be supervised and monitored afterwards by doctors and nurses. The drug, adalimumab, has been in use for 20 years and there are cheap versions available all over the world. It is an anti-tumour necrosis factor (anti-TNF) drug, which is...

China will stop accepting import orders from a Brazilian fish processing company for a week because the packaging has testes positive for coronavirus. Beginning on Sunday Monteiro Indústria de Pescados Ltda., was blacklisted by Chinese customs, a decision that was confirmed by the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries. Chinese customs had already warned that it would adopt this drastic measure – suspension for one week of purchases – in case of positive results for Covid-19 in cargo from a company for the first or second time. Last week China had already suspended imports from a seafood producer in Indonesia for a similar reason. The Brazilian government has...

In a survey of data published on the health department websites of 49 states, New York City, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam, a total of 624,890 child cases of COVID-19 were reported from the start of the pandemic through Sept. 24, or 10.5% of all cases in states reporting infections according to age. A smaller subset of states reported hospitalizations and mortality by age. The data from those states indicate "COVID-19-associated hospitalization and death is uncommon in children," according to the survey. The survey was compiled by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Children's Hospital Association. In announcing the survey, published Tuesday, the organizations said...

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledged at the United Nations on Saturday (Sep 26) that his country's vaccine production capacity would be made available globally to fight the COVID-19 crisis. "As the largest vaccine-producing country of the world, I want to give one more assurance to the global community today," Modi said in a pre-recorded speech to the UN General Assembly. "India's vaccine production and delivery capacity will be used to help all humanity in fighting this crisis." He added: "India will also help all the countries in enhancing their cold chain and storage capacities for the delivery of the vaccines." Modi said India was moving ahead with Phase 3 clinical trials -...

Teenagers are about twice as likely to become infected with the coronavirus as younger children, according to an analysis released Monday (Sept 28) by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The report is based on a review of 277,285 cases among children aged 5 to 17 whose illness was diagnosed from March to September. The findings come as 56 million children in the United States resume schooling amid contentious debates about their safety. Scientists are scrambling to understand how often children are infected and how often they transmit the virus, but the findings have been inconsistent. Much of the national debate has centred on children in primary schools. But the new...

Tests for Covid-19 that show on-the-spot results in 15 to 30 minutes are about to be rolled out across the world, potentially saving many thousands of lives and slowing the pandemic in both poor and rich countries. In a triumph for a global initiative to get vital drugs and vaccines to fight the virus, 120m rapid antigen tests from two companies will be supplied to low- and middle-income countries for $5 (£3.90) each or even less. The tests, which look like a pregnancy test, with two blue lines displayed for positive, are read by a health worker. One test has received emergency approval from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the other is expected to get it shortly. The quick...

“We need an affordable vaccine for everybody everywhere, because we will only be safe if everybody’s safe”, warned António Guterres. “To think that we can preserve the rich people, and let the poor people suffer, is a stupid mistake.” In a wide ranging-interview, just ahead of the unprecedented and mostly virtual UNGA75, Mr. Guterres outlines his priorities for the year ahead, with the unpredictable threat of the coronavirus that is still spreading, together with the opportunities that he sees to radically change course for the long-term benefit of all. The UN chief reiterates the imperative of silencing the guns through a global ceasefire so the world...