Qatar Airways launches Iata Travel Pass trial

Passengers on the Gulf carrier’s Doha-Istanbul route will begin testing the association’s test and vaccine certification platform from Thursday (11 March).

Qatar claims to be first airline in the Middle East to launch a trial; Etihad is aiming to introduce the pass during the first-quarter.

Besides being able to certify mandatory Covid travel documents, Qatar hopes the pass will play a key role in its planning transition to a more contactless passenger journey.

Iata Travel Pass provides passengers up-to-date information on Covid-19 health regulations in their destination country, and ensures compliance with global data privacy regulations to allow Covid test results to be shared securely with airlines.

"We are the industry’s firmest advocate for introducing digital solutions to help passengers safely and seamlessly navigate complex and ever-changing entry restrictions across the globe," said Akbar Al Baker, Qatar Airways group chief executive.

"We have confidence in the credibility of the Iata Travel Pass as the industry’s most reliable and innovative solution given its strong data privacy compliance, long-standing entry rules engine and ability to provide an end-to-end solution."