The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced Thursday that its anti-Covid health pass will go into service "
in the coming weeks
" in the Middle East, as Europe and the United States relax travel restrictions for the summer vacation.
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The “
IATA Travel Pass
” is a digital health application that allows travelers to check their PCR test or their vaccination, as well as share this data with authorities and airlines. “
We have received very positive feedback on the IATA Travel Pass. It will be put into service in the coming weeks with several carriers in the Middle East region,
”Willie Walsh, IATA chief executive, told a virtual conference Thursday.
At bay after a catastrophic year 2020 due to the pandemic, during which they lost two-thirds of their customers, airlines are campaigning, in order to revive air travel, for the implementation of health passes.
No vaccine certification scheme has yet been universally accepted or recognized, but the IATA pass has gained popularity with major Gulf airlines.
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The region's heavyweights Emirates, Etihad Airways and Qatar Airways were among the first in the world to test the IATA application in January. Several other countries around the world are working to put it in place. MEPs for their part gave the green light on Wednesday to the European Covid digital certificate, intended to facilitate travel this summer within the EU. Member states must put it in place by July 1.