Will Qatar Airways Be the First Carrier to trial Covid-19 Travel Pass app?

Qatar Airways is going to begin trialling the new IATA Travel Pass mobile app in March, on its Doha-Istanbul route.

The airline aims to be the first carrier in the Middle East to test the app, called a ‘digital Covid passport’.

Emirates and Etihad Airways plan to trial IATA’s Travel Pass app from April.

The system will allow passengers to receive Covid-19 test results and verify that they are eligible to undertake their journey.

Passengers can share their verified ‘OK to Travel’ status with the airline and other stakeholders, ahead of their arrival at the airport.

Akbar Al Baker, Qatar Airways Group chief executive, said: “The IATA Travel Pass effectively acts as a ‘digital passport’ for travellers.

“[It] is the latest tool in our fight against the spread of Covid-19, enabling passengers to securely and effortlessly navigate their travel plans, safe in the knowledge that their verified travel credential is based on the latest Covid-19 information, the strictest data privacy regulations and entry rules for the destination they will travel to.

“We hope that by investing in this technology we are able to further encourage passengers around the world to have greater confidence in the safety of air travel and begin making future travel plans over the coming months.”

Alexandre de Juniac, IATA director general and chief executive said: “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 help us build confidence among governments and travellers that IATA Travel Pass can securely and conveniently link traveller identities with their digital travel credentials.

“And it will highlight the need for governments to accelerate their work with industry to develop global standards for health certificates – a critical enabler to safely re-connecting the world.”