UK recruits airline cabin crew to do vaccinations

EasyJet cabin crews might be more used to handing out food in mid-air.

But now hundreds of them are set to train up in giving out vaccines.

The British airline said the National Health Service would train their workers up.

It's under a fast-track scheme intended to speed-up the country's vaccination efforts.

The UK is currently into its third lockdown.

The country has seen a surge in infections due to a new, highly transmissible variant of the virus and authorities are rushing out vaccines.

The government plans to inoculate around 15 million people by mid-February.

To do this, it's opening up centres and recruiting volunteers to help meet its target.

That's where cabin crews come in.

Many of easyJet's 3,000 crew members are not working due to low travel numbers.

And they are first aid trained and security cleared.

EasyJet said Wednesday (January 13) it expected hundreds of crew to sign up as vaccinators.

Few industries could do with the vaccine as much as air travel.

Finances have been squeezed at carriers all over the world,

In the last ten months, EasyJet has been forced to fire staff and take on more debt.