As more and more people are gaining back safety confidence in air travel, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) is positioning itself to speed up check-ins at the airport and further strengthen safety measures in air travel.
Early last month, IATA successfully completed a trial run with its Travel Pass App on an international flight between Singapore and London.
The Travel Pass app will allow airline travelers to store verified COVID-19 test results and vaccination certificates on their phones as well as create a digital version of their passport. According to IATA, the app will be available to download on iPhone around April 15th, with an Android version to follow later.
Virgin Atlantic, beginning April 16 plans to pilot the digital pass on its London to Barbados route. Barbados acceptance of the app at its border will make it one of the first countries to admit a digital pass instead of paper documentation.
According to IATA Regional Vice President for Africa and the Middle East Kamil Alawadhi, “the application will only achieve its success once airlines, different countries, airports adopt it.”
IATA’s Travel Pass isn’t the first COVID-19 passport. In the United States of America, New York launched Excelsior Pass in the past week.
The Excelsior Pass
The Excelsior Pass Wallet app was developed in partnership with the International Business Machines Corporations (IBM) to confirm a recent negative polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test result or proof of vaccination. The app features a secure QR code for businesses and venues to scan before allowing individuals to enter venues. Thus, the app will allow individuals to gain access to New York theaters, stadiums, and arenas, wedding receptions, catered events, among others.
“As more New Yorkers get vaccinated each day and as key public health metrics continue to regularly reach their lowest rates in months, the first-in-the-nation Excelsior Pass heralds the next step in our thoughtful, science-based reopening,” said New York Governor Andrew Cuomo.
