Three hotel quarantine sources,who spoke on the condition of anonymity because their company policies do not permit them to speak publicly,said they had been informed that flights would resume imminently.
Two sources at Healthcare Australia,theunder-fire company that provides medical services at nine quarantine hotels,said staff had been told flights would probably resume on March 13.
Internal correspondence from senior Healthcare Australia staff,seen byThe Age,confirms operational changes are being made to accommodate flights. Another senior hotel quarantine source said Health Department officials had been informing groups involved in the quarantine scheme that arrivals would probably begin within weeks.
Passenger flights have not arrived in Melbourne since February 14 when the Holiday Inn cluster that grew to almost 25 cases prompted a short lockdown.
Victoria had beenpreparing to increase its weekly intake by 200 to about 1300 but on February 12,when his government halted international flights,Premier Daniel Andrews said that when they resumed there could be a reduction in the number of returnees until COVID-19 vaccines were widely administered. He alsoquestioned whether people should be allowed into the state for anything other than compassionate reasons.
The Premier said on Thursday he was “not in a position to confirm when flights will begin arriving again in Melbourne”. A government spokeswoman said on Friday a decision had not been made. No government agencies have provided official advice to staff of an imminent resumption of flights.
“We’ve asked our medical experts to look at what the impacts of variants of concern are on the risk profile in our hotels. When ... they can satisfy me that we can have a system where we have the lowest possible risk,then flights will start,” Mr Andrews said on Thursday.