British Airways is the first airline in the world to start a pilot program in partnership with medical technology company Canary Global to assess how the Pelican Covid-19 Ultra Rapid Covid-19 test, which shows a result within 25 second, it can play a role in reopening international tourism.
The airline will invite cabin crew and pilots to perform the Pelican Covid-19 test and will compare the performance of the result with existing tests that employees periodically take anyway. Recently approved for use in Europe and the United Kingdom, the test is currently subject to US FDA approval. The British airline is the first in the world to test the new technology. If the assessment is successful, the airline hopes to be able to provide test technology for the routes where they are required.
British Airways launched the pilot antigen testing program in just 25 seconds in partnership with medical technology company Canary Global.
The test is an ultra-fast digital antigen test of saliva, which offers a sensitivity of 98% and a specificity of 100% in people symptomatic and asymptomatic with SARS-CoV-2. Users give a sample of saliva in a disposable box, shake the box and put it in a reusable digital reader that is connected to a smartphone device and then wait for the results that appear on the application installed on the mobile phone. The test that analyzes both S and N proteins is optimized to detect new variants.
British Airways has consistently supported testing as a way to reopen the journey safely and has provided its customers with access to a wide range of pre-departure discounts on return to the UK and has offered numerous on-arrival testing options. The airline has a dedicated website, where customers can find the right test to meet the requirements in the city of destination.
British Airways customers traveling to Cyprus, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal can now upload the negative PCR test result and other documents directly to the airline's website for pre-trip verification.