The swift and vast spread of Coronavirus Disease-2019 (COVID-19) was caused, to a significant extent, by aviation itself. This virus proliferated worldwide not only due to its ability to be transmitted from one human to another easily, but also due to the unprecedent volume of travel, especially by air, at a time of unprecedented globalization. In the wake of COVID-19, various novel practices have been and are being proposed. In this light, an examination of a number of these proposed practices is undertaken, this in order to determine whether they are legally sound or not. An examination of the laws underlying those practices follows, not least because such practices are virtually all erected upon a legal foundation. By examining the relevant laws on both an industry and State level, an attempt is made at determining whether or not such laws are adequate in allowing the corresponding practices to be effective. This article conclusively discusses whether the proposed practices and the underlying laws already in existence have the potential to prevent a future disease from spreading as swiftly and as vastly, and from disrupting the aviation industry as severely as COVID-19 has.
Air and Space Law