The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has announced that Etihad Airways, Jazeera Airways, Jetstar, Qantas, Qatar Airways and Royal Jordanian, will implement IATA Travel Pass in a phased rollout across the airlines’ networks.
These five airlines join Emirates Airline as IATA Travel Pass implementation pioneers.
This implies that Nigerians may soon commence use of the IATA travel passes especially as Emirates plans its resumption into the Nigerian route and Qatar Airways increasing frequencies in Nigeria.
IATA Travel Pass is a mobile app that can receive and verify a range of COVID-19 test results and digital vaccines certificates. Currently vaccine certificates from 52 countries (representing the source of 56 percent of global air travel) can be managed using the app. This will increase to 74 countries, representing 85 percent of global traffic, by the end of November.
IATA Travel Pass is expected to play a key role in the aviation industry’s recovery from the impact of COVID-19.
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The announcement, made on the sidelines of the 77th IATA Annual General Meeting being held in Boston, follows eleven months of extensive testing by 76 airlines.
“After months of testing, IATA Travel Pass is now entering the operational phase. The app has proven itself to be an effective tool to manage the complex mess of travel health credentials that governments require.
“And it’s a great vote of confidence that some of the world’s best-known airline brands will be making it available to their customers over the coming months,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General.
The app offers a safe and secure way for travellers to check the requirements for their journey, receive test results and scan their vaccine certificates, verify that these meet the destination and transit requirements and share these effortlessly with health officials and airlines prior to departure.
This will avoid queuing and congestion for document checks—to the benefit of travellers, airlines, airports and governments.
A digitalized solution to manage the paperwork of COVID-19 travel health credentials will support a return to travel when borders reopen. With many governments relying on airlines for COVID-19 document checking this will be critical in avoiding queues and congestion at check-in as travel ramps up.
