A man infected with coronavirus boarded a domestic Indonesian flight disguised as a woman, clearing security checks with his wife’s ID and vaccination card. The man, who was only identified by his initials ‘DW,’ boarded a 5.20am domestic Citilink flight from Indonesian capital Jakarta to Ternate while wearing an abaya that covered him from head to toe and a niqab that showed only the eyes.

His wife’s ID and negative PCR tests were accepted by officials at Jakarta’s Halim Perdana Kusuma Airport and the man managed to board the flight. All was going well for him until he decided to change into men’s clothes mid-flight. A flight attendant became suspicious after she spotted ‘her’ entering the aircraft’s bathroom wearing an abaya but exiting wearing men’s clothing.

The attendant notified authorities at the Sultan Babullah Airport in Ternate who detained the passenger once the plane landed after a three-and-a-half-hour flight.

‘DW’ was given a PCR test, which came back positive, said officials. He has been ordered self-isolation under the supervision of the Ternate Covid-19 Task Force.

Officials intend to prosecute the man once he recovers from Covid-19 and his self-isolation period is complete.