➔ Silvername - 27 Nov 2021

Many passengers on the two flights that arrived from South Africa to the Netherlands last night did not wear face coverings, New York Times reporter Stephanie Nolen says.

Nolen, who was on one plane, said many passengers did not follow the health guidelines despite a mask mandate by Dutch airline KLM, which operated both flights.

We now know that dozens of those passengers tested positive for Covid, although authorities have yet to confirm the presence of the Omicron variant.

Passengers were stuck on the airport tarmac for about four hours before being sent to be swabbed, tweeted Nolen, who later said she tested negative.

"... still probably 30% of ppl are wearing no mask or only over mouth. Dutch authorities not enforcing. We're just all in this unventilated room at hour 12, breathing on each other," she added.

"After all that time with maskless yellers in an unventilated space – we shall see what the next days bring."