IATA director general and CEO, Alexandre de Juniac has stated the components required to safely reopen borders when the epidemiological situation allows are becoming clearer.

These include:

Bio-safety. Since the onset of the pandemic, IATA and ICAO have developed step-by-step processes to minimize the risk of infection during air travel. These measures have already been largely implemented by regulators throughout the world;

Vaccines. Once healthcare workers and vulnerable groups have been vaccinated, the main risks will have been averted. According to Mr de Juniac, several governments have identified this as the point where they will consider lifting travel restrictions, including quarantine;

Rapidly expanding testing capacities, with more governments requiring travellers to be tested. Confidence in the various testing methodologies is also strengthening;

Development of standards around testing and vaccines. ‘Smart Vaccine Certificates’ are being developed by the WHO and ICAO, and the OECD is now laying the foundation for a global framework to help governments trust testing data based on mutual recognition of testing results. The challenge is bringing this work to a quick conclusion so that governments can adopt and implement them, according to Mr de Juniac;

Roll-out of IATA Travel Pass, providing travellers with a solution to securely store and present their verified vaccine or testing information to governments and airlines as needed.