Collinson and Swissport have announced they are working with Heathrow Airport to offer a pilot of their COVID-19 testing procedure.
The pilot, the first of its kind in the UK, will mean passengers can be checked for COVID-19 upon landing at Heathrow and know just hours later if they have tested positive for the virus. All three organisations are hoping the ‘Test-on-Arrival’ procedure could provide a solution to those travelling from places not included on last week’s list of countries exempt from quarantine if the Government also adds people testing negative during the process to its list of exemptions.
The announcement comes to a couple of weeks after Collinson and Swissport announced ‘Test-on-Arrival' as a potential alternative to the blanket 14-day quarantine policy. The experts in global medical and travel experience services and the airport ground and cargo handling service joined forces to devise the testing process and are now partnering with Heathrow to roll out the pilot. If embraced by the Government, the tests can build on the first step that was made with the traffic light system and help travel sector recovery by enabling even more people to travel from ‘red’ countries where quarantine is still required. And while maintaining public confidence around preventing the spread of the virus.
Richard Cawthra, Chief Commercial Officer, Swissport said “Test-on-Arrival perfectly complements last week’s list of countries exempt from quarantine. Should the Government also grant the exemption we are seeking, travellers could go to countries beyond those on the list with confidence, knowing that they would not face a quarantine upon landing in the UK as long as they test negative. This would not only stimulate inbound and outbound tourism and business travel in the UK, helping the economy and the travel sector back on their feet, but it would also safeguard the success of reopening up routes with the countries on the list. For example, if a country’s status was changed to ‘red’, testing would allow the Government to keep the route open with quarantine reintroduced unless they test negative. That is why this testing pilot with Heathrow is so vital – it’ll allow for more flexibility with how people can travel while keeping the public safe.”
John Holland-Kaye, CEO, Heathrow
The Government made a significant step forward last week by removing quarantine for visitors from many countries, but we still need a solution that safely allows passengers to travel to and from higher risk countries. This trial with Swissport and Collinson will provide a much-needed alternative to quarantine for those arriving passengers and should add further momentum to the Government’s push for Common International Standards which are needed for the resumption of global travel.
David Evans, Joint CEO, Collinson
We launched the tests to help get the travel ecosystem moving again, using science to reassure the public it’s safe to do so. PCR testing is the gold standard of COVID-19 testing, used by the NHS and Public Health England, as it is able to detect the virus even when someone is asymptomatic.
We have seen the results of clinical trials using the same testing protocol at other European airports. In these trials, travellers were tested on arrival and again five days later. They showed zero cases of someone testing negative in the first instance and then positive in the second, proving the sensitivity of the tests when carried out on arrival. We’re looking forward to working with Heathrow to pilot this science-led approach. Together, we can provide a pioneering solution that will get the travel and aviation sector back on its feet, which will be a massive boost for the UK’s economy.