Japanese Airlines tests mobile app to certify COVID-19 status of passengers

Friday, May 28, 2021

All Nippon Airways (ANA), Japan’s largest airline began testing a mobile app to certify the COVID-19 status of passengers, in a move towards the country’s potential issuance of “vaccine passports” aimed at making international travel smoother and safer.

The trial of the International Air Transport Association Travel Pass (IATA Travel Pass) will be conducted on the carrier’s international flights connecting Tokyo with Honolulu and New York through June 6.

As it is important to create an environment in which passengers can travel with peace of mind, the aviation industry has high hopes for the IATA app,” ANA executive Tadashi Matsushita, who is heading the project, said.

The smartphone app, developed by a global industry body, works by displaying passengers’ polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test results and vaccination status.

“IATA Travel Pass enables passengers to easily verify whether they meet the COVID-19 testing requirements of their destination and share their test results with airlines and authorities in a secure way,” ANA president Yuji Hirako said earlier.

Passengers involved in the trial at Tokyo’s Haneda airport on Monday said the process was smooth as they only had to show their phones and no other documents.

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