DOHA – Qatar Airways announced that from March 2021, it’ll start trialing the newly introduced IATA Travel Pass Digital Passport mobile app, in partnership with the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
The trial will play a vital role within the airline’s vision to have a more contactless, safe, and seamless travel experience for its passengers, Qatar news agency (QNA) reported.
The first phase of trials of the Digital Passport will be rolled out on the airlines Doha to Istanbul route, enabling passengers to receive COVID-19 test results and confirm they’re eligible to undertake their journey.
It can also allow travelers to safely and securely share their verified ‘OK to Travel’ status with the airline and other stakeholders, even before their arrival at the airport.
IATA Travel Pass will also provide up-to-date info on COVID-19 health laws helping travelers to ensure they meet the newest government entry requirements of their destination country.
Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive Akbar Al Baker mentioned: “With the most rigorous and robust COVID-19 safety program in existence within the global aviation group, we’re targeted on making certain that Qatar Airways will grow to be the first airline within the Middle East to start trialing the ground-breaking IATA Travel Pass technology and we’re dedicated to supporting the airline industry as a whole through IATA Industry Advisory Panel.”
“The IATA Travel Pass successfully acts as a digital passport for travelers and is the latest tool in our fight against the spread of COVID-19, enabling passengers to securely and effortlessly navigate their travel plans, safe within the knowledge that their verified travel credential is based on the latest COVID-19 info, the strictest data privacy laws and entry rules for the destination they will travel to,” Al Baker added.
Alexandre de Juniac, IATA Director General and CEO, mentioned: “Qatar Airways is displaying its industry leadership, IATA Travel Pass will verify testing or vaccination credentials of travellers, which is the key to unlocking travel without quarantine measures. The Qatar Airways digital passport trial will assist us to build confidence amongst governments and travellers that IATA Travel Pass can securely and conveniently link traveller identities with their digital travel credentials”.