As the commercial aviation industry struggles to regain international connectivity by betting both on vaccination and the often mentioned multi-layered approach that covers issues ranging from testing to more specific biosecurity measures, IATA Travel Pass has emerged as an integral solution for airlines, passengers and authorities, gradually gaining ground in the world.
Iberia announced that it will be the first airline to use this application on routes between Europe and Latin America.
The premiere was carried out this Saturday, April 10, on flight IB6011 that operated between Madrid and Montevideo, whose passengers will be pioneers in checking the operation.
«The IATA Travel Pass provides a framework of consistency, predictability and security at a global level with a double objective: on the one hand, to simplify the experience of travelers and incentivize travel and, on the other, to speed up the procedures for verifying health requirements» they highlighted from Iberia.
«This app allows you to store, manage and certify the health documentation required by different countries to travel such as the COVID-19 test certificates and, in a next step, also vaccination» they added.
The passengers on the flight received an email inviting them to visit a specific page on iberia.com, in which they should follow these steps:
1- Fill in a registration form.
2- If they meet the requirements, they will receive a personalized invitation from IATA to create their account in the app and link their passport.
3- Book an appointment at one of the collaborating laboratories or centers to perform their COVID-19 test.
4- After receiving the results of this test, IATA will confirm that the clients comply with all the sanitary documentary requirements demanded in their destination.
5- Finally, at the airport they will only have to show the IATA Travel Pass confirmation message «OK to travel», which will improve the travel experience as it avoids having to carry paper documentation. Clients will have to provide the rest of the documentation (ID, passport, visa) to be able to travel.
«With security as a principle, we are committed to technology to reopen borders, stimulate travel and restore normalcy as soon as possible. We are sure that IATA Travel Pass will play a key role in this regard; it is the way to facilitate the mobility of people, incentivize traffic and, at the same time, simplifying the travel experience for customers to make it more fluid and contactless» said Gabriel Perdiguero, Chief Customer and Transformation Officer at Iberia.
For his part, Nick Careen, Senior Vice President of Airports, Passengers, Cargo and Security at IATA, said that «restoring flights and doing it safely is essential to support the thousands of people who work in the aviation sector and all related industries. With this proof of the IATA Travel Pass, Iberia is helping to lay the foundations for a reconnected world in which health certificates will play a key role. And, in the longer term, the digital identity of the IATA Travel Pass will position Iberia customers as the spearhead for a safe and contactless travel experience.
