Argentina bans all commercial flight sales until at least 1 September

Argentina has banned all commercial flight sales until at least 1 September due to coronavirus.

The move is one of the world’s strictest travel bans in relation to Covid-19 and will prevent the sale and purchase of flights to, from or within Argentina.

The decree was signed by the National Civil Aviation Administration and stated that the restrictions over the course of the next four months were “understood to be reasonable”.

Argentina has experienced 4,003 cases of coronavirus with 197 fatalities as of Tuesday morning, according to data from Johns Hopkins University.

Argentina’s more severe measures, which follow the decision to close its borders to non-residents in March, resembles similar action from Ecuador, Peru and Colombia, who have suspended commercial flights but not gone as far as to impose such a lengthy extension.

“The problem was that airlines were selling tickets without having authorization to travel to Argentine soil,” a spokesman for President Alberto Fernandez said.

Despite the decree insisting the move is “reasonable”, the international aviation agency maintain it “breaches bilateral agreements” and that as many as 300,000 jobs are now at risk.

Alta, a group lobbying on behalf of Latin American airlines, underlined the “imminent and substantial risk” to jobs.

An Alta statement read: “The resolution was not shared or agreed with the industry and, furthermore, runs counter to the efforts of all the actors in the sector.”

It is unclear right now how Peronist leader Mr Fernandez plans to handle the country’s largest carrier, Aerolineas Argentinas, which is state-owned and would require subsidising until September.

Upon searching for available flights on the airline’s website, the following message appears: “We do not have flights available for you on those days. We suggest you carry out a new search.”

Mr Fernandez has extended lockdown until 10 May, though metro areas populations of fewer than 500,000 may see a return to normality. Those smaller towns may see movement limited to half the population at a time, while limited recreational activities will be allowed within 500 meters (0.3 mile) of each home.

The British government announced on Sunday there would be two new special charter flights from Buenos Aires to bring home British nationals, on 7 May, to London Gatwick and 12 May, to London Heathrow.

Since the coronavirus outbreak, Mr Fernandez, who defeated Mauricio Macri in the 2019 general election, has seen his approval ratings rise significantly, currently sitting at 53.2 per cent, up from 42 per cent in September, according to pollster Synopsis.