Mark Baker/AP Staff board a US Air Force C-17 as they prepared to take the season's first flight to McMurdo Station from Christchurch Airport in September 2020. They are “cashed-up”, Covid-free and desperate for a well-earned vacation, but the hundreds of Americans who fly into New Zealand after being stationed in Antarctica have been told they have to “leave on the first available flight”. Much to the chagrin of the personnel who have been based at America’s Antarctic research base, McMurdo Station, they are not allowed to holiday here, despite transiting through Christchurch on their way home. STUFF Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins confirms no new community cases in the community or in MIQ and says no-one who catches Covid should be blamed.