A DAY after Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced another lockdown in the UK, Heathrow Airport was filled with worried people who wanted to get out of the country as soon as possible.

Although the PM has not closed the borders or ordered compulsory quarantine for arriving passengers, the airport looked rather deserted on Tuesday as many countries are yet to reopen flights to the UK.

When I reached Terminal 5, from where British Airways operates, in the morning, I could see hundreds of worried faces who were unsure if there would be any last-minute change in plans.

Patrick Martin, 57, who was waiting with his wife for their flight to the US, said he was relieved to fly back.

“I was in the UK for two weeks for a family emergency. We live in the US. When Boris announced that he would address the media yesterday, we were worried as we had booked these tickets two weeks ago. But thankfully there was no border closure.”

The staff deployed at the airport were ordered not to talk to the media, but they were carefully assisting the passengers in ensuring normalcy.

When I approached a manager of airline staff, he said he was not at a position to talk to the media, and could not comment on the number of people boarding flights.

Many airlines are reducing their already meagre UK schedules, prompted by the new lockdown and the prospect of further restrictions on travel abroad.

EasyJet has pared back its flying programme to prioritise essential connections between key UK cities and “a small number of international routes”. British Airways said it will keep crucial links open, while TUI has halted all package holiday tours from the UK to mid-February, when the new lockdown is set to end.

Most check-in desks at Heathrow are deserted, while the operating desks are busy with departing passengers.

Meanwhile, at Terminal 2, where non-BA flights operates, there was a longer queue as all passengers had to walk through one entry point.

Although, passengers were trying to maintain social distancing, this system could pose potential risk to the spread of coronavirus.

Azhar Mansoor, who was waiting at Terminal 2, for his Covid test results, said this had been the worst two weeks of his life.

“I arrived in the UK to meet my fiancée. I have been trying to go back to Munich since December 24. I have had five flights cancelled because of lockdown and delay in getting test results. Finally, I’m flying back today.”

While Mr. Mansoor was finally about to catch back a flight to his home, it was not the same for Pedro Garcia, who is not sure if he could fly to Spain.

Spain has issued a travel ban on passengers from the UK. The UK Government says officials are "working closely" with Spanish authorities to resolve issues over post-Brexit residency documentation.

“I’m waiting to hear from the airlines whether I could fly to Madrid. I have taken my test, but there is still confusion whether Spain is accepting flyers from the UK. I study at a university in Madrid. I was in London to meet my parents for Christmas. If I can’t travel back now, I will lose a big part of my final year in uni.”

Compared to departure terminals, the arrivals were furthermore deserted. Flyers are believed to be cancelling their trips to the UK in the backdrop of increase in coronavirus cases, and lockdown restrictions.

But Jin Kim, had no choice but to fly from South Korea to the UK, as her postgraduation classes are beginning this month.

“I’m coming to the UK for the first time. I was concerned about coming here, but I had no information about university reopening. If I knew early that it was going to be online classes, I would have delayed my travel.

“I just landed in London. Now I have to catch a flight to Edinburgh. I hope the lockdown ends soon and life will be back to normal.”

According to government’s travel guidelines, you must not leave home including to travel abroad, unless you have a legally permitted reason to do so, such as for essential work purposes.

If you are legally permitted to travel, check government’s advice for the country you are visiting. Other countries have closed borders, and may further restrict movement or bring in new rules including testing requirements with little warning. Before you return to the UK you must provide your journey and contact details. Also check if you need to self-isolate.

If you are travelling abroad and wish to return to the UK, contact your airline or travel provider.

Meanwhile, there are ongoing debates on UK government’s decision to not test incoming passengers. Despite being standard practice in many parts of the world, the government maintains that airport testing is not a suitable alternative to a 14-day isolation period for travellers from risky countries because it does not pick up people who get ill after they have arrived.

And, in support of this argument, the prime minister, transport secretary and health secretary have all insisted that testing at points of entry will only identify 7% of coronavirus infections.