SIA to trial digital health verification process on inbound flights from KL, Jakarta

NATIONAL carrier Singapore Airlines (SIA) will be trying out a new digital health verification process from Wednesday, with passengers flying into the Republic from Jakarta and Kuala Lumpur being the first in the pilot protocol.

In a press statement on Tuesday, SIA said the verification process - the world's first based on the International Air Transport Association's (IATA) Travel Pass framework - allows passengers to securely store and present information related to Covid-19 tests, as well as their vaccination status.

SIA customers who take their Covid-19 tests at selected clinics in the Indonesian and Malaysian capitals would be given either digital or paper health certificates with a QR code. Customers without a digital certificate would be able to present the paper version for manual verification instead.

SIA noted that this is a faster and more secure way to validate a passenger's health credentials compared to the existing protocols, speeding up both the airport check-in process and the immigration entry process into Singapore.

The carrier intends to put the entire process into the SingaporeAir mobile app from around mid-2021, using the IATA Travel Pass framework.

Travel Pass is a mobile app to help passengers easily and securely manage their travel in line with any government requirements for coronavirus testing or vaccine information.

JoAnn Tan, acting senior vice-president, marketing planning at SIA, said: "Covid-19 tests and vaccinations will be an integral part of air travel for the foreseeable future. We are offering a digital solution that allows the easy and secure verification of this information, and supports the industry's safe and calibrated recovery from this pandemic."

Nick Careen, IATA's senior vice-president for airport, passenger, cargo and security, said: "This will help ensure that SIA's customers will be among the first to benefit as governments reopen their borders with testing or vaccination requirements."

SIA shares were trading at S$4.30 as at the midday break on Tuesday, down S$0.08 or 1.8 per cent.