The International Air Transport Association (Iata) has warned of potential airport chaos unless governments move quickly to adopt digital processes to manage travel health credentials (Covid-19 testing and vaccine certificates) and other Covid-19 measures.
The statistics illustrate the urgency.
Pre-Covid, passengers, on average, spent about 1.5 hours in travel processes for every journey (check-in, security, border control, customs, and baggage claim).
Current data indicates that airport processing times have ballooned to 3.0 hours during peak time with travel volumes at only about 30% of pre-Covid levels.
The greatest increases are at check-in and border control (emigration and immigration) where travel health credentials are being checked mainly as paper documents.
Modelling suggests that, without process improvements, the time spent in airport processes could reach 5.5 hours per trip at 75% pre-Covid-19 traffic levels, and 8.0 hours per trip at 100%.
“Without an automated solution for Covid-19 checks, we can see the potential for significant airport disruptions on the horizon,” said Willie Walsh, Iata’s director general.
Already, average passenger processing and waiting times have doubled from what they were pre-crisis during peak time - reaching an unacceptable three hours. And that is with many airports deploying pre-crisis level staffing for a small fraction of pre-crisis volumes.” Walsh said nobody would tolerate waiting hours at check-in or for border formalities.
“We must automate the checking of vaccine and test certificates before traffic ramps up. The technical solutions exist. But governments must agree digital certificate standards and align processes to accept them. And they must act fast.”
