Gallery: More Airlines, Pharmacies Team Up on COVID Testing

EL AL Israel Airlines will launch a trial in which and XpresSpa Group’s XpresCheck will provide on-site testing on select EL AL travel routes in Terminal 4 at New York JFK International Airport. The new pilot program, launching on August 5, requires negative COVID-19 PCR tests from passengers departing JFK International Airport and arriving at Ben-Gurion International Airport in Israel. A negative COVID-19 PCR test is currently required for passengers of all ages, including those vaccinated, upon landing in Israel. Located in JFK T4, XpresCheck will collect specimens for rapid molecular testing services to EL AL passengers upon landing in Ben-Gurion International Airport to detect the active presence of COVID-19 and reduce the risk of spreading the virus.

UK LCC easyJet and pharmacy retailer Boots have partnered to enable passengers to book relevant COVID-19 tests pre- and post-travel with Boots’ testing hub via easyJet’s website. Customers can book the pre-departure in-store COVID-19 PCR Testing Service (£85; $117.60), which is available at over 200 Boots stores and offers results the next day. Alternatively, they can purchase an at-home self-swab COVID-19 PCR Test Kit (£65) from 500 stores or online via Boots.com to be delivered to their home, offering results from 24-48 hours from receipt of the sample at the lab. Customers traveling to countries that accept antigen tests can book the in-Store COVID-19 Rapid Antigen Testing Service (£59), which provides same-day results and is available at 30 Boots stores.

Drive-through COVID-19 PCR testing has been introduced at Frankfurt Airport (FRA), through a partnership with Fraport, Lufthansa and CENTOGENE. Last year, the three partners opened FRA’s testing center. In addition to the drive-through testing, Austrian Airlines, Lufthansa and Swiss International Air Lines’ passengers can also reserve baggage check-in service between 23 and 2 hours before departure.

American Airlines is expanding its preflight coronavirus (COVID-19) testing program with new self-administered and more in-person testing options to make travel easier and safer for its customers. Customers can now order an Abbott BinaxNOWHome Test through telehealth provider eMed. These 15-minute, self-administered tests are supervised virtually by an eMed Certified Guide 72 hours before a customer’s return to the US eMed is a CDC-accepted administrator of rapid antigen tests that can be taken abroad and receive electronic documentation for reentry to the US with a negative test result.

British Airways will conduct a trial with medical tech company Canary Global, to assess how its Pelican Covid-19 Ultra Rapid Covid-19 test, which displays a result within 25 seconds, can play a role in opening up travel. The airline will be inviting flight and cabin crew to take the Pelican Covid-19 test and will compare the performance of the result against existing tests that they are already taking. Recently approved for use in Europe and UK, the test is currently going through US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval and the airline is the first in the world to trial the new technology. Subject to successful evaluation the airline hopes to be able to offer the test technology on applicable routes where tests have to meet the stated specificity and sensitivity standards. The test is a non-invasive saliva ultra-rapid digital antigen test that delivers 98% sensitivity and 100% specificity in symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals with SARS-CoV-2. Users simply take a sample of their saliva into a disposable sensor unit, shake and insert it into a re-usable digital reader which is connected to a blue-tooth enabled device like a smartphone, and then wait for the results that appear through a mobile app. The test which probes for both the S and N SARS-Cov-2 protein is optimized to detect variants that have originated across the globe.

United Airlines and Abbott Laboratories are collaborating with BinaxNOW COVID-19 Home Test and Abbott’s NAVICA app to allow United passengers departing the US with the BinaxNOW Home Test in their carry-on bag administer the test via the eMed digital health platform while overseas, avoiding the need to find a testing center abroad. The partnership is in response to the updated US Center for Disease Control guidelines permitting passengers to self-administer a rapid antigen test under the real-time supervision of a telehealth service and use the verified negative test results to board an international flight to the US if they test negative.

Airport spa and wellness services operator XpresSpa rolled out rapid polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests at 11 US airports, allowing passengers to take the tests and receive results in just 30 minutes’ time. The highly accurate Accula PCR tests, produced by Thermo Fisher Scientific, have been introduced to 13 terminals at 11 major airports, including Boston Logan, New York’s JFK, Newark Liberty International, San Francisco International and Seattle-Tacoma International, among others. The Accula testing system is more sensitive and offers fewer false positives and false negatives than rapid antigen tests, while providing a much quicker turnaround time than most existing PCR tests, which can take several days before results become available.

Unilabs, the leading European diagnostic services provider, and the International Air Transport Association (IATA), the trade association for the world’s airlines, have signed an agreement to incorporate Unilabs’ worldwide Covid-19 testing network into IATA Travel Pass. The agreement will make Unilabs one of the first major lab groups to be integrated into IATA’s Travel Pass app. Proof of a negative Covid-19 test is required by many governments as a condition of entry, and the app makes the process seamless, secure, and easy.

United Airlines’ digital platform is now able to schedule tests and have the results directly verified through the Chicago-based carrier’s Travel-Ready Center. United customers will have access to more than 200 testing sites in the TrustAssure network, including testing sites within United’s hubs of Chicago, Houston, New York/Newark, Los Angeles and San Francisco, as well as those located at many drug store and pharmacy chains. In the weeks and months ahead, the airline plans to expand availability to more US cities and add access to international testing sites for customers flying to the US.

Ethiopian Airlines Group has partnered with China’s BGI Genomics subsidiary BGI Health Ethiopia, to launch high-end COVID-19 testing laboratory at Addis Ababa Bole International Airport. The testing center includes testing to passengers that are departing or transiting via Addis Ababa. The lab has a capacity to carry out 1,000 COVID-19 tests a day with a potential to grow further after expansion. Regular test results can be obtained within three hours.

American Airlines, through a partnership with GoHealth Urgent Care, is offering more in-person testing options at more than 150 local urgent care facilities or hospitals. In addition, The Dallas/Fort Worth-based carrier is opening quarantine-free travel on flights from New York-JFK to Milan (MXP) and Rome (FCO), Italy when service returns. Prior to travel, customers will need to provide proof of the required negative COVID-19 test. Based on current Italian rules, upon arrival in Milan or Rome and after taking a second test at the airport producing a negative result, travelers will be able to forgo the local post-travel quarantine requirements. American resumes daily service to MXP April 4 and 3X-weekly service to FCO May 8 after being suspended for a year.

Caribbean Airlines has partnered with Ink Aviation to enable passengers to book and pay for COVID-19 tests via the airline’s website, up to seven days in advance, but no less than 48 hours prior to departure. The partnership uses a new integrated booking portal. The platform integrates with multiple stakeholders, including medical establishments, airlines, airports and governments, to securely validate and share passenger health credentials, such as test results and vaccines.

Hawaiian Airlines expanded its pre-clearance program to Japan and South Korea from Incheon International Airport. The program was already in effect at Narita and Kansai international airports, allowing guests who meet Hawaii’s pre-travel testing requirements to bypass the state’s 10-day quarantine and additional airport screening in Honolulu by having their documents verified before boarding. Travelers whose negative COVID-19 test results are not uploaded to the Safe Travels app prior to departure will be required to sign the state of Hawaii’s 10-day self-quarantine agreement upon arriving in the state.

Abu Dhabi Airports, in partnership with Pure Health and Tamouh Healthcare, has launched the region’s first PCR testing laboratory within an airport. The new RT-PCR lab offers fast COVID-19 testing within the Abu Dhabi International Airport (AUH) to facilitate the resumption of air travel and assist with quarantine tracking procedures. All passengers arriving at Abu Dhabi International Airport through both terminals 1 and 3 will be tested at the AUH PCR testing facility. Results of the COVID-19 tests will be shared by SMS and WhatsApp, as well as being available on the Alhosn mobile application.

Pre-departure rapid testing that delivers results within 15 minutes will be trialed at Edinburgh Airport as part of recovery planning for aviation in Scotland. The week-long trial began March 1, 2021 and uses tests that only require a saliva sample, meaning no nasal swab and a more positive testing experience. PocDoc and BioSure are running the trial, using PocDoc’s end-to-end testing solution and the new, groundbreaking BioSure saliva antigen test. The trial is open to staff and campus volunteers due to low passenger numbers and will demonstrate how testing can be scaled at airports, potentially adding to the testing capability already in place at Edinburgh Airport.

American Airlines’ AAdvantage members can redeem miles to order an at-home COVID-19 testing kit through LetsGetChecked, one of American’s testing partners. The pre-flight testing program covers nine countries and any US city, state or territory that has COVID-19 travel restrictions.

The Greater Toronto Airports Authority (GTAA) announced a robust new COVID-19 PCR and antigen testing research program at Toronto Pearson International Airport. The program, which starts March 1, is supported in part by funding from the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program. It is designed to explore the efficacy of antigen testing, compared with the rapid polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test, in a high-throughput, commercial environment, as well as the operationalization of rapid PCR testing in an airport environment.

A permanent E. Gulbis Laboratory patient reception point has been opened at Riga Airport, offering travelers and employees of the airport and companies working at the airport an opportunity to take various types of COVID-19 tests, as well as perform other types of medical tests. The patient point is located in the airport’s check-in hall.

The Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico, will be offering PCR molecular COVID-19 tests for all passengers, in terminals A, B and C at the airport. Done in partnership with CMT Group, this testing will comply with Island entry requirements, as well as provide easy access to testing for those leaving the Island. While Puerto Rico is exempt from the CDC negative COVID-19 test requirement for re-entry into the US, travelers who still wish to get tested will have the ability to do so without having to leave the airport.

Global alliance SkyTeam is facilitating customer access to COVID-19 tests with a new online directory of over 15,000 testing locations worldwide. The Testing Labs Locator, powered by TrustAssure, enables customers to find and book the COVID-19 test they need with a trusted health provider, including polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests, in a matter of clicks. SkyTeam’s Testing Labs Locator highlights a growing number of testing locations servicing hundreds of cities in over 75 countries where travelers can secure a necessary test before or after they fly. The new tool is available on SkyTeam.com and will be rolled out across many member airlines’ websites.

Hawaiian Airlines, which launched its Pre-Clear Program at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) in mid-January, will expand it to Boston Logan International Airport (BOS), John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) Long Beach Airport (LGB) and Phoenix International Airport (PHX) beginning Jan. 29, 2021. The program will be added to the airline’s remaining North America destinations in February. Visitors and returning Hawai‘i residents who meet the state of Hawai‘i’s pre-travel testing requirements to be exempt from quarantine will receive a Pre-Clear wristband from a Hawaiian Airlines guest service agent who will verify their documents prior to boarding.

Singapore Airlines (SIA) customers will be able to book their pre-departure COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and serology tests, and receive their results on a one-stop online portal, as part of a new pilot service. The pre-departure test service is currently available to Singapore Airlines and SilkAir passengers departing from Singapore, Jakarta and Medan, as part of its pilot test phase. There are plans to expand this service to more cities in the SIA and SilkAir network over the next few months if the pilot is successful. SIA’s partner in this pilot is medical service provider Collinson. Customers can make an appointment for a pre-departure test with their preferred clinic from the list of recognized testing facilities available on the online portal. They will also receive their test results through the same portal, which they can then present upon check-in at the airport. These test results will come with a QR code that enables airport check-in staff and Singapore immigration authorities to verify under IATA Travel Pass framework.

In the first week of January, a large-scale COVID-19 testing campaign was conducted at Frankfurt Airport by the three major air cargo handling companies FCS Frankfurt Cargo Services, LUG aircargo handling and Perishable Center Frankfurt (PCF). A total of around 1,500 employees of the companies, which together handle around 40% of the air freight at Frankfurt Airport, was tested. Over several days, the Bensheim-based company Chemlab conducted the tests on site. The aim of the measure is to ensure even better protection of the workforce against infection in the company. Photo caption: FCS managing director Claus Wagner is tested.

Orange County, California-based Hoag nonprofit regional health care delivery network is offering COVID-19 rapid testing at John Wayne Airport. Testing is open to travelers as well as the surrounding community, with results available within 15-30 minutes. Urgent care services are also coming soon to the Hoag Fly Well Clinic located at John Wayne Airport—post security in Terminal B—offering travelers access to health services including office visits, telehealth consultations, vaccinations, treatment of minor illnesses and injuries and prescriptions.

E.Gulbis Laboratory contactless Covid-19 testing point has been opened at Riga Airport. At the mobile testing point of E.Gulbis Laboratory, which is located at the exit of arrivals hall E, a COVID-19 test can be taken by travelers, guests, and airport employees who have access to Latvian-recognized authentication tools such as Swedbank, SEB, Luminor or Citadele Bank internet bank, e-parakstsID or e-paraksts mobile or Smart-ID. Foreign nationals who do not have access to these authentication applications cannot use the service at this point, but the airport is working with E.Gulbis Laboratory to find a solution for providing such an opportunity.

Ender Diagnostics now offers a PCR test innovation at the newly opened pre-departure testing facility operated by Swissport subsidiary Checkport Schweiz at Zurich Airport in Switzerland. The sample is not taken by nasal swab as with conventional tests, but on a saliva basis. The tests are sold as self-test kits on site and can be performed in test boxes independently, with no assistance required by medical personnel. The test boxes are cleaned after each traveler. The samples are transported to the Swiss Analysis AG laboratory four times a day by a dedicated courier service. Following the opening of the pre-departure testing facility at Heathrow Airport in October 2020, this is the second testing facility operated at a major international airport with the participation of Swissport.

Delta Air Lines, which is trialing pre-flight COVID-testing on flights between the US and Europe, launched its first COVID-free, quarantine-free flight from Atlanta-Amsterdam flight Dec. 16. The flight was the first of two the Atlanta-based carrier is launching this week, with an Atlanta to Rome option starting Dec. 19. The flights allow customers to avoid quarantine after testing negative for the virus prior to travel and upon arrival in the Netherlands and Italy. Both trial programs are available to all citizens permitted to travel to the Netherlands or Italy for essential reasons, such as for certain specified work, health and education reasons. Customers who are transiting via Amsterdam to other countries will still be required to follow entry requirements and any mandatory quarantine in place at their final destination.

Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT) is joining several airports around the world to offer optional COVID-19 testing for arriving and departing passengers. In partnership with TACKL Health, the testing program is offered inside PIT’s Airside Terminal in Concourse A. The center, which is beyond the security checkpoint, is a safe space with socially distanced seating, privacy curtains and directional floor decals. The location is centrally located near the Center Core across from Gate A2. The testing option inside the terminal is an expansion of PIT’s ‘Safe Travels’ program that features a number of health and safety measures implemented this year in response to the pandemic.

Delta Air Lines, the Aeroporti di Roma and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) have joined in a first-of-its-kind trans-Atlantic COVID-19 testing program that will enable quarantine-free entry into Italy, in accordance with a decree expected to be issued soon by the government of Italy. Starting Dec. 19, Delta’s dedicated trial will test customers and crew on newly relaunched flights from Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport to Rome-Fiumicino International Airport. The tests will exempt from quarantine on arrival in Italy all U.S. citizens permitted to travel to Italy for essential reasons, such as for work, health and education, as well as all European Union and Italian citizens.

Dublin Airport has opened two COVID-19 testing facilities, operated by healthcare firms Randox and RocDoc. They will offer passengers and consumers the option of either a drive-through test or a walk-in test. The facilities have a testing capacity of more than 12,000 tests per day, to be expanded to 15,000.

Hawaiian Airlines is offering drive-through and walk-up COVID-19 pre-flight tests for guests traveling to the islands from Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Portland and Seattle. Guests who test within 72 hours of their flight and receive a negative result prior to departure will be exempt from the state of Hawai‘i quarantine.

European ULCC Wizz Air partnered with Confirm Testing to offer Wizz Air customers an exclusive discount on rapid COVID-19 tests and “Fit to Fly” certificates. From Nov. 27, 2020, UK customers requiring negative PCR test results to travel or wanting to reduce their quarantine period upon return will have exclusive access to a promotion code in order to buy Confirm Testing kits at reduced prices.

United Airlines is expanding its customer COVID-19 testing efforts to include flights out of Houston to select destinations in Latin America and the Caribbean. Starting for flights departing Dec. 7, customers originating from George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH) will have the option to take a self-collected, mail-in test that meets local entry requirements for the following destinations, allowing them to reunite with family or start their vacation immediately.

American Airlines (AA), British Airways (BA) and oneworld have launched an optional COVID-19 medical-based testing trial on selected flights from the US to London Heathrow (LHR), in a combined effort to scientifically demonstrate how COVID-19 testing can reopen international travel and remove the need for passengers to quarantine on arrival. The free tests will initially be offered to eligible customers booked on selected flights (DFW-LHR) and BA (LAX-LHR). The test will be expanded to American Airlines flight AA106 from JFK to LHR, with a launch date to be announced.

Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) has partnered with Discovery Health MD to pilot COVID-19 PCR testing before security, with same-day or next-day turnaround for travelers within 72 hours of departure. The program will run through Jan. 31, 2021.

XpresSpa Group, Inc. has opened XpresCheck at Boston’s Logan International Airport. XpresSpa Group is a health and wellness company. The XpresCheck facility is a new modular site constructed within the International Arrival area, pre-security in Terminal E. It contains seven separate testing rooms and has an anticipated capacity to administer over 400 COVID-19 tests per day.

XpresSpa Group, Inc. has opened XpresCheck at Boston’s Logan International Airport. XpresSpa Group is a health and wellness company. The XpresCheck facility is a new modular site constructed within the International Arrival area, pre-security in Terminal E. It contains seven separate testing rooms and has an anticipated capacity to administer over 400 COVID-19 tests per day.

United Airlines will launch a free transatlantic COVID-19 testing pilot program for customers. From Nov.16 through Dec.11, 2020, the Chicago-based airline will offer rapid tests to every passenger over 2 years old and crew members on board select flights from Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR) to London Heathrow (LHR), free of charge. United will collaborate with Premise Health, which will administer the rapid testing pilot program for the EWR-LHR flight.

Northwell Direct and JetBlue Airways are partnering to provide the New York-based carrier with a comprehensive set of COVID-19 services and programs that include testing approaches for its teams in New York City, clinical concierge services for crewmembers, and consulting and advisory services for JetBlue’s leadership. The program, which is expected to evolve and expand based on needs, is designed to detect and prevent COVID-19 and to aid in the recovery of the airline industry.

Collinson and Swissport have launched pre-departure rapid testing facilities at London’s Heathrow Airport. The facilities, located in Terminals 2 and 5, will initially offer passengers travelling to Hong Kong the option to fulfill those countries’ pre-departure testing requirements at the airport before they fly. These tests, including LAMP and Antigen tests, can easily be administered pre-flight at the airport.

The mobile laboratory at Brussels Airport opened in mid-October. With this lab, the samples taken in the Test Center can be analyzed immediately on site, and therefore faster than before. Rapid tests are now possible as well, enabling passengers to receive their tests results within four hours. Since the opening of the Test Centre Sept. 14, more than 7,000 passengers have been tested at Brussels Airport.

United Airlines and San Francisco International Airport (SFO) are making two tests available to customers traveling to Hawaii: a rapid test option taken at the airport on the day of travel or a drive-through test conducted at the airport 48-72 hours before departure. Customers who produce a negative test result through either option will be exempt from quarantine requirements in Lihue, Maui and Honolulu. Customers traveling to Kona will be required to take a second complimentary test when they arrive to the island to avoid quarantining.

Virgin Atlantic introduced COVID-19 pre-flight testing at its Heathrow base for cabin crew and pilots. In partnership with GeneMe UK, official distributor of the FRANKD test, the trial offers crew and pilots a rapid Point of Care COVID-19 RT LAMP test. In independent laboratory tests, FRANKD is shown to be 100% specific and 97% sensitive to detecting SARS-CoV-2. Through integration with the digital ID platform Yoti, the test process is fast, secure, paperless and does not require a lab. After a swab is taken on site, results are processed and delivered on the Yoti app within 30 minutes.

Air Canada finalized an order for an initial batch of 25,000 rapid-response COVID-19 test kits, as it looks to convince the Canadian government to relax its 14-day quarantine rule for international arrivals. Manufactured by Chicago-based Abbot, the ID NOW rapid-response antigen tests provide results in under 15 minutes, potentially enabling travelers to quickly test upon arrival and bypass the need for mandatory quarantine.

Abu Dhabi-based Etihad Airways will include a diagnostic test to detect COVID-19 infections with all of its tickets. The PCR (polymerase chain reaction) testing will be available in the fourth quarter at a network of Life Medical Diagnostic Center (Life Dx) clinics across the UAE between 48 and 96 hours before departure. First- and business-class passengers will have the option of having the test conducted at their homes. The exception is for passengers traveling to China, who are subject to specific testing protocols and can only use Abu Dhabi Health Services Company testing facilities.

Hawaiian Airlines offers travelers visiting or returning to the Hawaiian Islands from the US mainland a pre-travel COVID-19 test they can take from home to qualify to be exempt from the state of Hawaii quarantine. Travelers can order the $150 mail-in saliva test online through Vault Health.

American Airlines is collaborating with several foreign governments to begin offering preflight COVID-19 testing for customers traveling to international destinations, starting with Jamaica and the Bahamas. The carrier plans to expand the program to additional markets in the weeks and months ahead.

JetBlue Airways is partnering with Vault Health to make COVID-19 testing widely available to customers with pending travel plans. The New York-based ULCC said the “reliable at-home test option provides convenience to customers wanting peace of mind and those who must secure a negative COVID-19 test result before entering certain states and countries or in order to avoid certain mandatory quarantines.” Vault Health will handle all testing and provide JetBlue customers both discounts on their tests and a dedicated customer support phone line.

JetBlue Airways announced Aruba is the first Caribbean nation to partner with the New York-based airline for seamless entry testing through JetBlue’s testing partner, Vault. The supervised at-home test facilitated by Vault’s platform is the first and only saliva-based test accepted for entry of JetBlue customers by Aruban authorities. Vault facilitates all testing conducted by its collaborating laboratory. JetBlue customers receive a dedicated customer support phone line through the process.

In partnership with the Minnesota Department of Health and Vault Medical Services, the Metropolitan Airports Commission (MAC) has opened the state’s ninth COVID-19 PCR saliva testing location at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP). The testing site expands testing capacity for Minnesota residents and will be available to Minnesota residents at no cost and for a fee to out-of-state residents.

Tucson Airport Authority and Pima County Health Department have partnered to provide free COVID-19 testing to individuals traveling through Tucson International Airport (TUS). The TUS Testing Center will be located in the baggage claim area near baggage carousel #5. Testing will begin Friday, November 20 from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. every Friday through Monday. The site is aimed at providing early testing to travelers arriving at the airport. Passengers are able to schedule appointments conveniently with the help of QR codes posted throughout the terminal.