American Airlines has enabled Covid-19 vaccination record verification to the VeriFly health passport app, the carrier announced.
For now, the option is available for travel to three countries in the Americas: the Bahamas, El Salvador and Guatemala. Travelers can upload photos of both sides of their vaccination record into the app, and VeriFly will then validate the documents, speeding up document verification at check-in.
American has been using VeriFly to validate passengers' Covid-19 testing records and other documentation for select destinations since late last year, and many of its partners—including Aer Lingus, Alaska Airlines, British Airways, Iberia, Japan Airlines and Qantas—also are using the app. The app is working to adapt to vaccination requirements as they are enacted around the world.
"As countries reopen to those who have been vaccinated, we are ready with VeriFly to help our customers travel with confidence," American Airlines VP of customer experience Julie Rath said in a statement.
American also has opened expedited check-in lanes for travelers using VeriFly at its hubs in Charlotte, Dallas/Fort Worth, Los Angeles and Miami as well as in Cancun; Puerto Vallarta; Liberia, Costa Rica; Bogotá; London Heathrow; and Tokyo Narita.
U.S.-U.K. Testing Trial Results
In addition, American Airlines and British Airways on Thursday released data on a Covid-19 testing program they began conducting on select flights between London and both New York and Los Angeles last November, analyzed by University of Oxford researchers.
During the trial, travelers were tested 72 hours prior to departure, upon arrival in London and a third time three to five days after arrival. Throughout the trial, which ran through March and had about 600 passenger participants, 1 percent of travelers tested positive in the initial test and did not travel. No travelers tested positive upon arrival in London, and 0.4 percent tested positive in the final test.
The carriers will be sharing the results with governments to demonstrate how testing programs can enable them to lift restrictions and quarantine requirements.
"The trial findings underline the important role that testing can play in the safe reopening of international travel, including hugely significant routes between the U.S. and U.K.," according to a joint statement by American, BA and Oneworld. "The affordability of testing is crucial for travelers, and we stand ready to partner with governments and the private sector to offer affordable testing options for our customers who would like or need to travel again."