Airports warn governments to embrace science over politics in COVID reopening

October 8th 2021

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A high-level International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) conference will be warned governments should reject politics for a scientific and harmonised approach to reopening borders. Read More » Airports Council International World (ACI World) director-general, Luis Felipe de Oliveira, will tell the virtual conference on post-COVID aviation recovery, resilience and sustainability later this month that governments need to apply risk-based scientific and harmonised measures rather than those developed for political reasons. He will emphasise the importance of adhering to and applying World health Organization and ICAO guidelines as well as the need for mutual recognition of vaccines and testing across borders. Also included on the list of airport requirements will be the importance of using interoperable digital formats as proof of vaccine, testing and recovery. “It is imperative ministers at the ICAO high-level Conference on COVID-19 support a pragmatic and risk-based approach to managing the sustained recovery of the industry and be ready to remove barriers as aviation returns to higher levels of traffic – all the while keeping passengers and industry workers safe,” de Oliveira said. “We must learn from the mistakes of the past, such as the response following 9/11, and recognize we need a proportionate response to the threat and not continue to impose measures once the need has passed.“