Saudia will do the same in Saudi Arabia, between Kuala Lumpur and Jeddah, while the Covid-19 pandemic restricts the possibilities of pilgrimage in this month of Ramadan.
Swiss International Air Lines will be the first subsidiary of the Lufthansa group to test the IATA Travel Pass application, starting next week between Zurich and London.
From April 22, 2021 between its base in Zurich-Kloten and London-Heathrow airport, the Swiss national company will test the “digital health passport” developed by IATA: voluntary passengers will be able, thanks to the Travel Pass, to “obtain information on the entry conditions related to the coronavirus in their country of destination and receive the result of their Covid 19 test directly in the application. It will thus be possible for them to provide airlines and authorities with proof that they meet the entry conditions without having to disclose personal health information, which will facilitate and speed up processes at airports ”underlines the press release from Swiss. The app “follows the strictest data protection guidelines. Health information remains in the application and is not centralized or transmitted. Passengers retain full control of their data. The IATA Travel Pass is already accepted by Singapore as official proof of health upon entering the territory, “said the Star Alliance company.
Dieter Vranckx, CEO of SWISS, said: “We support all efforts to make it possible to travel easily and with confidence again during the pandemic period. Digital health passports, such as the IATA Travel Pass, are a valuable tool in reconciling health protection and the freedom to travel. They improve our customers’ ability to plan their trips, while giving them confidence in their travels. Stable, harmonized conditions that promote mobility, as well as the adoption of an internationally recognized and standardized methodology for digital testing and vaccination certification, seem essential to us.
This is the only possibility to continue to ensure the best possible connections between Switzerland and the main European and world centers, which is of crucial economic importance “.
In addition to the IATA Travel Pass, SWISS is also exploring the use of other digital solutions such as the European Union’s Green Digital Certificate and the CommonPass like its parent company. “As a test in addition to these possibilities”, SWISS passengers can upload their proof of test on swiss.com up to 12 hours before departure on the Newark – Zurich lines from mid-March, as well as between Zurich and Spain or Portugal (since early April). These results are verified so that customers know before they leave whether they meet the requirements of the authorities concerned. “This practice should be extended to other airlines,” concludes the Swiss company.
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