Airports Council Joins Airline Call for Pilot Program for COVID Testing on International Flights

September 3, 2020

Washington – Airports Council International – North America (ACI-NA), the trade association representing commercial service airports in the United States and Canada, today joined Airlines for America in calling for government pilot programs for COVID-19 testing for international flights.

“We continue to encourage governments to adopt risk-based and harmonized approaches to health and safety that will allow for the easing of international travel restrictions, including the reopening of the border between the United States and Canada,” said ACI-NA President and CEO Kevin M. Burke. “A government pilot program to examine the efficacy of COVID-19 testing on international flights would be an important step toward reopening travel and restoring confidence as our industry begins to recover. ACI-NA will continue our work with our airline partners, the federal government, and other important stakeholders to help ensure the health and safety of passengers and airport workers.”

Similarly, airports in Canada are working with public health officials and air carrier partners to explore ways in which testing and improved contract tracing can be deployed to further mitigate the spread of COVID-19 and restore confidence in air travel.

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About ACI-NA

Airports Council International-North America (ACI-NA) represents local, regional, and state governing bodies that own and operate commercial airports in the United States and Canada. ACI-NA member airports enplane more than 95 percent of the domestic and virtually all the international airline passenger and cargo traffic in North America. Approximately 380 aviation-related businesses are also members of ACI-NA, providing goods and services to airports. Collectively, U.S. airports support more than 11.5 million jobs and account for $1.4 trillion in economic activity – or more than seven percent of the total U.S. GDP. Canadian airports support 405,000 jobs and contribute C$35 billion to Canada’s GDP. Learn more at www.airportscouncil.org.