The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has cautioned of probable airport turmoil until governments implement digital methods to manage travel health credentials (COVID-19 testing and immunization certificates) and other COVID-19 measures as quickly as possible. The consequences will be extreme:

• Before COVID-19, travelers spent an average of 1.5 hours each voyage in travel procedures (check-in, security, border control, customs, and baggage claim).

• As per current data, airport clearance times have risen to 3.0 hours during peak hours, with travel volumes remaining only approximately 30% of pre-COVID-19 levels. The most significant increases occur during check-in and border checks (emigration and immigration), wherein travel health qualifications are mostly examined as paper documentation.

• Without process changes, modeling predicts that time spent in airport processes might exceed 5.5 hours per trip at 75% pre-COVID-19 traffic levels, and 8.0 hours per trip at 100% pre-COVID-19 levels of traffic.

“Without such an automatic solution for COVID-19 inspections, we predict substantial airport problems on the horizon.” Throughout peak hours, typical passenger assessment and waiting times have already quadrupled from pre-crisis levels, reaching an intolerable three hours.

This is even though many airports are employing pre-crisis level manpower for only a small fraction of pre-crisis traffic. No one will put up with hours of waiting at check-in or the border. Before traffic picks up, we need to automate the verification of vaccinations and test certificates. There are technical alternatives available. Governments should agree on digital certificate standards and coordinate mechanisms to embrace them. But they must respond swiftly,” said Willie Walsh, the director-general of IATA.

Air travel has been reimagined during the last two decades to put passengers in charge of their flights through self-service systems. This allows passengers to arrive at the airport "ready to fly."

Border check operations are also becoming more self-service, thanks to digital identity technologies and e-gates. Paper-based COVID-19 document checks would return travelers to manual check-in and border control operations that are currently suffering even with low traffic numbers.

Solutions

If governments demand COVID-19 health certifications for traveling, including those into already automated systems will ensure a seamless restart. For COVID-19 testing and vaccination certifications, internationally recognized, standardized, and interoperable digital certificates would be required.

Advantages of digitalizing certificates:

• Avoiding falsified documentation

• Allowing governments to conduct early “ready-to-fly” checks

• Reducing airport queues, crowding, and wait period through connectivity with self-service check-in (via the internet, kiosks, or mobile phone apps)

• Increasing safety through integration with border control officials' along with the use of digital identity management.

• Lowering the danger of virus transmission through the interchange of paper documents between people.

Establishing a Global Strategy

The G20 has come up with a similar idea. The G20 Rome Principles for the Future of Tourism advocate for a global approach to COVID-19 testing, immunization, certification, and information, and the development of digital traveler identification.

The G7 meeting, on June 11, is the next chance for top nations to find a solution centered on four critical measures by committing to:

1. Create vaccination certificates in compliance with World Health Organization (WHO) Smart Vaccine Certificate data standards, which would include QR codes.

2. Provide COVID-19 test certifications in compliance with the International Civil Aviation Organization's data criteria (ICAO)

3. Accept digital COVID-19 test and immunization certificates at respective border crossings.

4. Whenever governments mandate airlines to verify travel permits, governments should adopt traveler-friendly applications, such as the IATA Travel Pass, to make the procedure more efficient.

“This cannot be postponed. Vaccinations are being administered to an increasing number of people. More frontiers are being opened. Booking trends indicate that pent-up demand is exceptionally strong.

“Governments and responsible agencies are working in isolation and advancing at a glacial pace. It is still possible to restart smoothly. However, governments must recognize the urgency and act quickly,” Walsh added.

IATA recommends that the G7 collaborate with the air transport industry to take the lead in reviving the global travel sector. We could guarantee that regulatory criteria for safe travel are satisfied with solutions that are easily operationalized by collaborating with the air transportation sector.

“A suitable initial move would be G7 agreement on a shared set of COVID-19 travel standards, with industry participation. The following stage would be to implement and mutually recognize those needs.

“If the G7 adopted these bold steps, the flexibility to travel might be recovered for roughly one-third of all travels. Other nations may build on that leadership to resume global connections securely and efficiently,” Walsh added.