Emirates Airline to trial Iata's coronavirus travel passport 'within days'

Chief operations officer Adel Al Redha says data on the pass will provide secure vaccination details for airlines and governments

A new travel pass app that can be used to show if a person is vaccinated or has had a recent PCR test will be trialled in Dubai. It follows the recent introduction of a contactless system deployed at 122 smart gates, pictured. Courtesy: GDFRA

A passenger lines up for an iris scan. He is not required to hand over his physical passport at 122 gates within the airport

The fast-track biometric passenger journey service uses face and iris-recognition technologies

Maj Gen Mohammed Al Marri, director general of the GDRFA immigration service, speaks to media during a tour of Dubai International Airport in March

Eight Emirates Airline check-in desks have been fitted with biometric cameras

The smart gates enable passengers to complete passport control procedures between five to nine seconds

The upgrade will make the movement through smart gates smoother and faster

Passengers passing though the smart gates must lower their masks, glasses and hats then look at the camera and keep as still as possible.

154,000 travellers have used Dubai International Airport’s new biometric system, which eliminates the need to use identification documents

Passengers registered under the new system no longer need to show their passport or boarding pass, from checking in to boarding the plane.

Emirates Airline will begin to trial a coronavirus travel passport at Dubai International Airport within days, a senior executive said.

Adel Al Redha, chief operations officer, said app-based travel passports were just one measure that could be used to kick-start air travel.

The digital travel pass, created by International Air Transport Association (Iata), is a free app that allows users to upload pre-departure test results.

It will soon also allow travellers to share their vaccine records and tests in a verifiable and safe manner.

The travel industry hopes it will give governments the confidence to open borders and ensure airports and customs officers can recognise various vaccines and test results from across the globe.

"We're expecting to start trialling within the next few days", Mr Al Redha told Dubai Eye's Business Breakfast.

"We've done all the background and we've done all the IP links between us and Iata. In addition to that we'll also be linking with the Dubai Health Authority.

"We will be trying it, and we'll have passengers on actual flights going through this process to make sure that, if there are any technical glitches in the systems, we can overcome them."

The airline has also introduced contact-less check-in and passport control in Dubai Airport to reduce contact between passengers and staff.

Passengers just have to register their biometric details and, as they move through the airport, identity checks are completed automatically through a combination of iris and facial recognition technology.

Frictionless travel for the vaccinated

Mr Al Redha said he believed a travel passport is the best option for countries, airlines and passengers.

"The IATA passport is the means to transmit and have available on the system, all the information related to the vaccination, so passengers don't have to carry with them any documents.

"Plus also it's the most secure way of having the vaccination details available in the airline reservation systems.

"Also the passenger themselves will be able to access the entry criteria for any countries.

"I think this information is rapidly changing, and having all that at the tip of your fingers on your phone or your application – it will really give the passenger all the relevant information," he said.

As vaccination campaigns continue, more and more countries are announcing frictionless travel for passengers who can prove they have been vaccinated.

The Seychelles is the latest country, but Estonia, Poland, Guatemala and Georgia have also made announcements.

This trend is set to continue, said Mr Al Redha.

"I think this will be the way it is going forward."