Following successful trials, Etihad Airways has expanded IATA’s digital health passport on flights between Abu Dhabi and seven destinations across its network.
The IATA Travel Pass is available for guests on all Etihad flights between Abu Dhabi and Bangkok, Barcelona, Geneva, Madrid, Milan, New York and Singapore and offers the convenience of a one-stop platform for managing COVID-19 documentation.
Mohammad Al Bulooki, Chief Operating Officer at Etihad Aviation Group, said: “The feedback from the IATA Travel Pass trial has been positive, with Etihad’s guests appreciating its ease-of-use and data security. Etihad is pleased to now make IATA Travel Pass available on flights to and from seven major global cities, providing more guests with the option of simplifying their journey and airport experience.”
Nick Careen, IATA’s Senior Vice President for Operations, Safety and Security, said: “Etihad’s decision to expand IATA Travel Pass based on positive customer feedback is a strong endorsement of the solution. IATA Travel pass was designed to provide a one-stop-shop solution for travellers to safely and efficiently manage their COVID-19 documentation and generate an ‘OK to Travel’ which airlines can trust. It’s great to see the app in use facilitating the restart of international travel.”
Etihad Airways was one of the first airlines globally to begin testing IATA Travel Pass in April 2021 in support of a global, standardised solution for travellers to validate their documents and navigate COVID-19 travel requirements.
To access the IATA Travel Pass, passengers need to download the IATA Travel Pass app for Android or iOS, where they can add their Etihad Airways travel itinerary, view their travel requirements and securely share their PCR test results.
The IATA Travel Pass app also includes functionality to upload vaccination certificates, opening up opportunities for travel where vaccination is a requirement. Currently the app is able to accept EU Digital Covid Certificates issued by all 27 member states of the European Union plus Switzerland, Iceland, Norway, and Lichtenstein as well as vaccine certificates from Singapore and Qatar. As vaccines continue to roll out globally, more and more travellers around the world will be able to upload their government issued COVID-19 vaccine certificates to facilitate seamless travel.
The airline is continuing to work closely with IATA to progressively roll out the digital travel pass to more cities across its route network.