Coronavirus: Colonel Talks About China Evacuation - "At the Load Limit"

Corona virus: An air force machine has flown more than 120 people from China back to Germany. Now there are two new infected cases. The Air Force talks about details of the flight.

• Coronavirus : The number of infected people in Germany rises to ten, in China to over 14,000.
• A Bundeswehr machine has brought 124 people back from Wuhan.
• It was confirmed on Sunday that two German passengers had been infected with the corona virus.

Update of February 3, 2020, 11:14 a.m .: The mission was exceptional: An Airbus 310 "Kurt Schumacher" of the Air Force flew 124 passengers from the coronavirus area in China and brought them back to Germany. "Mission completed" - the mission of the Federal Foreign Office has been successfully completed for the Air Force. The effort was anything but ordinary.

" The crews came back and were all very relieved that it was over, " said Colonel Johannes Stamm, deputy commanding officer for flight readiness, in a Twitter video that the account called Team Air Force shared.

The Bundeswehr flight readiness crew was in use for over 24 hours. The crew had gone home and is now sleeping off, reports senior physician Dr. med Thomas Harbaum via Twitter.

There is no risk of infection for those involved, crew or staff, emphasized Dr. with Thomas Harbaum .

Corona virus in Germany: How the Luftwaffe crew protected itself

During the flight, every contact with the passengers should be carried out exactly the same measures that are recommended by the Robert Koch Institute. In order to avoid any infection, the entire crew had to put on protective equipment.

Colonel Johannes Stamm, deputy commander of flight readiness.

© Screenshot Twitter Team Luftwaffe

“The atmosphere on the flight was slightly tense. We were at the load limit with personnel and material, ”said Colonel Johannes Stamm to Bild.de (behind the payment barrier). The relief is all the greater now.

The Luftwaffe aircraft was disinfected after being deployed to the Corona crisis area at the Cologne location and is ready for use again after 24 hours.

#coronavirus After the #Team_Luftwaffe's # A310 landed in Frankfurt last night with 124 passengers, it flew on to Cologne. Colonel Johannes Stamm and senior physician Dr. med. Thomas Harbaum put the events together. @bundeswehrInfo pic.twitter.com/3CVzLLcjta

The German citizens evacuated from China were brought to a barracks in Germersheim after landing in Germany.

Corona virus in Germany: There is a problem with the new corona virus

Update of February 3, 2020, 10:38 a.m .: Federal Minister of Health Jens Spahn (CDU) sees the German health system well equipped to deal with the coronavirus from China. Should the situation worsen, "everyone in the healthcare system would make an effort to concentrate resources precisely on this," Spahn said on Monday in the ARD morning magazine. Then it was immediately checked "how much staff, doctors, nurses had to be made available for such a situation".

With only ten people currently ill , Germany is “far from being” in such an emergency. "We have learned from recent years," said Spahn, referring to previous epidemics such as Sars or Ehec . "This is the important signal: that we know when the numbers change, whatever the illness, that we have already planned measures with the hospitals and doctors."

The ten infected people in Germany are doing, "As of now, their health is very good," said the minister. The problem with the new type of corona virus, however, is "that we don't finally know everything about it" - for example about the transmission routes . As long as there are unanswered questions, "great care should always be taken".

Corona virus confirmed: Two German returnees infected - student reports on the epidemic trip

Update from February 3, 2020, 10.35 a.m .: It was probably not the most comfortable flight for the more than 120 passengers. Because of the suspicion of corona virus, the Bundeswehr took Germans and relatives from the severely affected Wuhan in China. There has been a state of emergency for weeks now, as more than 300 people have already died from the virus.

But even after arriving at Frankfurt Airport, the numerous passengers cannot look forward to the necessary rest after the travel stress, because they have to be quarantined for the next two weeks. The picture was able to reach a Chinese returnee and get information about the difficult journey.

Preslava Peshkova (25) is a student and sat in the machine to Germany with the other people suspected of being infected with viruses. “The crew wore masks and protective clothing and the passengers only masks that were changed every 3-4 hours. The food was from Lufthansa. The flight was exhausting for everyone, but the crew went out of their way to make the trip as comfortable as possible. There was no entertainment system on board, ”she told Bild .

And what happened next? “After we landed, we were taken to a gym where we were examined. Then we drove to the barracks, ”Peshkova is quoted by the picture. In the barracks in Germersheim (Rhineland-Palatinate), the passengers are then quarantined. But there, too, there are clear rules on how the possibly infected people are divided. "Only families and friends stay together," continues the 25-year-old.

The student feels "very well looked after" and waits "for the result". So far, she has "no symptoms yet".

Update from February 2, 2020, 4.35 p.m .: According to the Hessian Minister of Social Affairs Kai Klose (Greens), the two passengers who have returned from China and are infected with the coronavirus are "doing very well according to the circumstances". Both are German citizens. The medical director of the University Hospital Frankfurt, Jürgen Graf, added on Sunday in Frankfurt that the two patients were admitted to the hospital and treated there in isolation. They are "medically well".

The fear of the corona virus can be felt worldwide: The "Aida Perla" was now not allowed to moor in the Caribbean, as a number of passengers complained about flu symptoms.

Coronavirus in Germany: Spahn talks about the state of health of the two new infected people

Update from February 2, 2020, 3:49 p.m .: The two passengers who returned from China with a Bundeswehr aircraft and were infected with the corona virus were free of symptoms when they arrived in Germany, according to Health Minister Jens Spahn . “Both of the patients were symptom-free on departure from China as well as on arrival in Frankfurt,” emphasized the CDU politician on Sunday in Berlin.

They are doing well at the moment, they are being examined in the university clinic in Frankfurt. This also shows that it was right to opt for central accommodation for the returnees. Spahn said if the 14-day incubation period showed that other returnees were infected, they would be taken to a clinic immediately.

Video: how contagious is the corona virus?

Two Germans infected - another person has the all-clear: Coronavirus could not be confirmed

Update from February 2, 2020, 1:27 p.m .: While it was confirmed on Sunday that two German passengers from the plane from Wuhan were infected with the corona virus, another person has been given the all-clear . However, the passenger brought directly to the Frankfurt University Hospital because of the suspected virus can breathe a sigh of relief because the suspicion could not be confirmed .

According to medical examinations, 115 people from the plane were driven to a barracks in Germersheim (Rhineland-Palatinate) on Saturday evening, where they had to spend the next two weeks in quarantine. Eleven additional passengers had to be brought directly to the Frankfurt University Hospital.

Corona virus: Two German returnees from China have been infected

Update from February 2, 2020, 11:10 a.m . : According to two new confirmed infected cases. After a plane from Hubei province with more than 120 people landed at Frankfurt Airport last Saturday, it is now clear, according to SWR, that two returnees from China are infected with the corona virus. It is unclear whether the two cases are German citizens.

The inmates were taken directly into quarantine after landing on Saturday in Germersheim - according to the district administration in Germersheim, two of the people affected have now tested positive for the virus. They are now to be brought to a hospital in Frankfurt in a special vehicle. The other quarantined passengers remain in Germersheim.

"The affected people took this finding in a concise manner and were isolated," it said in a joint press release by the Air Force, the German Red Cross, the district and the city of Germersheim.

For the Germersheim population , but also for the civil and military helpers, there is "no need to worry " despite the two illnesses, it said on Sunday.

According to the head of the Frankfurt Health Department, René Gottschalk, eleven passengers were isolated during the flight in order to avoid a possible risk of infection.

In the meantime, researchers from China have discovered that the coronavirus could also spread to the digestive system in addition to droplet infection. Chinese researchers have also found the virus in stool and rectal swabs after discovering that some patients have diarrhea instead of the usual fever, the Xinhua news agency reported on Sunday.

Coronavirus: Airplane with over 100 passengers lands in Frankfurt - German infected in Spain

Update from February 1, 2020, 10:02 p.m .: The eighth case of a person infected with the coronavirus has become known in Bavaria. It is an employee of the automotive supplier Webasto , the man lives in Munich. It was also announced on Saturday that a German tourist in Spain had been infected with the corona virus. The Spanish Ministry of Health said that he would be treated in isolation on the Canary Island of La Gomera. He had previously had "close contact" with an infected person in Germany.

Meanwhile, Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer (CDU) announced an aftermath of the scandal in Russia. The return flight led to a diplomatic quarrel there on Saturday. The authorities there had denied the Wuhan Air Force aircraft the previously announced landing permit for a stopover at Moscow Airport, as AKK said. This was justified by capacity bottlenecks at the airport.

Coronavirus: Airplane lands in Frankfurt - many passengers are brought directly to the university hospital

Update from February 1, 2020, 8:09 p.m .: One of the passengers from China is being examined for the corona virus in the Frankfurt University Hospital. Eleven passengers were brought directly to the university clinic by the plane, said Hesse's Minister of Social Affairs Kai Klose (Greens). One of them should be clarified whether he was infected with the corona virus , while the others had other medical reasons, explained Klose about three hours after the plane landed at Frankfurt Airport .

The nationality and gender of the so-called clarification case were initially unknown. The result of the rapid test is expected on Sunday afternoon, said the head of the Frankfurt Health Department, René Gottschalk. The person had shortness of breath and a slight cough . "It is not particularly dangerous, even if it were a case," said Gottschalk. A total of 124 passengers landed in Frankfurt, including 100 Germans, 22 Chinese, a US citizen and a Romanian.

Update from February 1, 2020, 4:43 p.m .: The Bundeswehr aircraft, which German and other citizens flew out of the Chinese Wuhan affected by the coronavirus , has landed in Frankfurt. The plane arrived late due to a detour via Helsinki.

Now the passengers are to be examined and questioned by medical doctors while still on the plane. Then they are brought to a so-called medical assessment center , a redesigned sports hall. If passengers have symptoms, they are brought to the Frankfurt University Clinic . Healthy returnees are transported to an air force base in Germersheim , Rhineland-Palatinate , to remain in quarantine for two weeks.

Update of February 1, 2020, 1:27 pm: Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer has confirmed that the Bundeswehr aircraft was not allowed to stop in Moscow with returnees from China on board. The CDU politician said in Bonn on Saturday that a promised landing permit had not been given , instead the crew had been redirected to the Finnish capital Helsinki. Moscow has officially explained this with insufficient capacity at the airport.

The Ministry of Defense wants to clarify with the Federal Foreign Office what other possible reasons are. In Helsinki, the machine was refueled and the crew was replaced.

The plane with German citizens and family members on board had started in Wuhan at night and should arrive in Frankfurt am Main after the stopover in the afternoon. According to airport operator Fraport, the machine should start in Helsinki at 1.40 p.m. It will land in Frankfurt at 3:50 p.m. at the earliest .

#coronavirus: The # A310 ready to fly has safely landed in Helsinki. The crew is changed and the aircraft is refueled for the onward flight to Frankfurt. @bundeswehrInfo @Bw_Einsatz #Team_Luftwaffe pic.twitter.com/Xy7zrrBs7n

Corona virus: This is how it continues with the returnees from China

Update from February 1, 2020, 12:31 p.m .: The Bundeswehr's plane with returnees from China on board is expected in Frankfurt on Saturday afternoon. The machine had started at night in the Wuhan area, which was particularly affected by the outbreak of the coronavirus .

According to the authorities, neither sick people nor suspected cases are in the machine . The return trip is voluntary. After arriving at Frankfurt Airport, people are to be examined and interviewed on board by doctors, and then also in a so-called medical assessment center - a redesigned sports hall.

If someone shows symptoms, he will be taken to an isolation ward in the Frankfurt University Clinic, the Frankfurt health authority says. Afterwards, the returnees are to be taken to an air force base in Germersheim, Rhineland-Palatinate, where they must remain in quarantine for two weeks .

Coronavirus: "Lack of capacity on the ground" - Russia refuses to land air force flight

Update from February 1, 2020, 11:45 a.m .: The return of German citizens from the Chinese epidemic has led to a diplomatic scandal with Russia . Russia has prevented the German Air Force Machine with the 128 returnees from Wuhan from making the mandatory stopover in Moscow , Colonel Daniel Draken, the commander of the flight preparedness in the Federal Ministry of Defense, told Bild am Sonntag . The Airbus will now stop in Finland's capital Helsinki to refuel.

"Russia did allow us to fly over," Draken told the newspaper. "But a landing at the Moscow airports was denied due to insufficient capacity on the ground."

Coronavirus: Russia has prevented the Luftwaffe aircraft with 128 returnees from Wuhan from making a stopover in Moscow.

© dpa

According to information from Bild am Sonntag , Russia had previously offered the German authorities the prospect of landing . The stopover on the flight to Frankfurt am Main is necessary to refuel the government Airbus and replace the pilots. An A310 crew had already flown to Moscow on Thursday to take over the aircraft there.

The news that the Moscow landing was denied came Saturday night, the report said. According to information from Bild am Sonntag , security circles consider the Russian side's reference to space problems to be advanced.

Coronavirus: Germans expected in Frankfurt on Saturday - Spahn: "They cannot be released into everyday life"

Update, 5:24 pm: On Saturday, a Bundeswehr aircraft with about 90 German citizens from China is to land at the airport in Frankfurt . Although none of the people who are to be evacuated from the Chinese metropolis of Wuhan show symptoms that would indicate an infection with the corona virus , they are first placed in quarantine in Germany . The principle of caution with forbearance applies here.

Federal Minister of Health Jens Spahn (CDU) told focus magazine: "As long as we don't know whether the returnees from the infection areas have contracted the coronavirus , we cannot release them into everyday life." He also emphasized: "We are very vigilant. But calm. "

Update, 2:23 p.m .: The number of people infected in Germany continues to increase. The first infected child has now been confirmed *.

Coronavirus: Air Force brings Germans back from China - those affected report dramatic details

Update, 2:12 p.m .: The Germans who are to be flown out of Wuhan already gathered on Friday at the airport in the Chinese metropolis, which was severely affected by the lung disease. They had been told that they were already at the airport at 8:00 p.m. local time (1:00 p.m. CET), a woman, who did not want to be named, reported to the German Press Agency by telephone.

They will probably have to endure the night at the airport because the Air Force plane had just started from Cologne-Wahn airport an hour earlier and takes around ten hours to China. According to dpa information, around 130 people are to be brought back - around 90 German citizens and around 40 relatives with another nationality.

When it started on Saturday was unclear. "We actually have no idea," said the woman. It is also unclear whether there should be medical tests beforehand. That they should be quarantined for 14 days after arrival in Frankfurt was accepted as a necessary evil. "I understand why the measure was taken," said the woman. "But you are not looking forward to it now."

The early arrival to the airport, the woman explained, was that perhaps it should be avoided that someone got stuck in the city on Saturday morning and didn't get away. The transportation to the airport had to be organized, which was difficult because cars can only drive with a special permit.

Corona virus: Air Force brings Germans back from China - Germany is preparing

Update, 11:58 a.m .: The plane that is to fly German out of the Chinese province of Hubei, which is most affected by the corona virus, took off in Cologne on Friday. The Bundeswehr aircraft took off from Cologne-Wahn airport around 12 p.m. and is expected to arrive in Germany again on Saturday.

Update, 11:41 am: With the flight of the Air Force due to the lung disease in China more than 100 people are to be brought to Germany. There is no one among them who is infected and no suspected cases, said Foreign Minister Heiko Maas (SPD) on Friday in Berlin. The machine was due to start in Hubei Province, which was severely affected by the coronavirus, on Friday morning, after all the Chinese authorities have given it permission. Arrival in Germany is scheduled for this Saturday. At the request of China, 10,000 protective suits would be taken on the outward journey that would be needed on site, said Maas.

According to information from the German Press Agency, around 130 people are to be brought back by flight - including around 90 German citizens and around 40 relatives of other nationalities who have registered. Maas said that there were also requests from other countries to fly out their citizens, but that all available places in the Bundeswehr plane were occupied. Participation in the return flight is voluntary.

Corona virus: Air Force brings Germans back from China - Germany is preparing

Announcement of origin 11.05: Cologne / China - Germany has five coronavirus sufferers on Thursday, in China the number of those affected rises to almost 9,700 - the number of deaths is 213. A machine starts on Friday for fear of the virus Luftwaffe , around 90 Germans are to be flown out of the area. However, only people who do not experience any symptoms before departure are allowed to board the aircraft .

In France, the number of infected people has now increased to six, including a doctor. The Federal Foreign Office is now warning of trips to China. Research is also prepared thanks to test procedures. A vaccine is being developed. *

Corona virus in Germany: Luftwaffe brings around 90 German citizens from China

The returnees are said to be in quarantine at the Germersheim air force base in Rhineland-Palatinate for around 14 days. At Frankfurt Airport, the passengers on the return flight will first be taken to the medical assessment center, as the head of the agency, René Gottschalk, told hr-Info in a post broadcast on Friday morning.

This serves to "record possible contact persons". Should one of the passengers show symptoms of illness * , he will be brought to the university clinic in Frankfurt , said Gottschalk.

Corona virus in Germany: Germans have to be quarantined after landing

Infections and deaths saw the biggest increase in one day until Friday. The number of patients with the novel coronavirus rose to 9692 around 1981, as reported by the Health Commission in Beijing . The number of deaths rose by 42 to 213.

On Thursday evening, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the spread of the virus a "health emergency of international scope". The 190 member countries will coordinate the crisis measures recommended by the WHO .

For hours, 7,000 people were stuck on a cruise ship on the Italian coast. Now there is a suspected coronavirus case on board. A virus expert is now warning of the spread of lung disease in Germany. * The fear of the corona virus is spreading. A taxi driver even threw a coughing passenger out of the car. The video showed the escalation in the car.

Jens Spahn and the doctor Johannes Wimmer discussed the corona virus with Maybrit Illner. The doctor's worrying statements hit a nerve with Spahn.

Rubric list image: © Screenshot Twitter Team Luftwaffe