North American airlines lagging in implementation of advanced health protocols

Fewer airlines in North America are using health protocols such as thermal scanning and requiring travelers to complete health declaration forms compared to airlines in other parts of the world.

That analysis comes from VIDEC, a travel industry advisory and analytics firm that has been compiling data in its Safe Travel Barometer, a dashboard that tracks health and safety measures from 360 companies including airports, hotels, cruise, amusement parks and 70 destinations.

Analyzing information from 70 airlines in six continents, VIDEC found the use of face masks and hand sanitizers are the most common efforts employed by airlines around the world.

But fewer airlines are taking traveler temperatures using thermal scanning or requiring travelers to complete health declaration forms. 

In North America, just 31% of airlines are using pre-boarding thermal scanning, compared to 88% of those in the Middle East and 70% of those in Asia Pacific. 

VIDEC says, with the exception of Southwest Airlines, most carriers in North America do not require travelers to declare their recent health details – whereas in Asia Pacific more than a third of airlines are doing so.

“The world around us has changed in the last three months. A prominent question on travelers’ mind these days is, how safe is it to travel in the COVID-19 environment?” says Virendra Jain, co-founder and CEO of VIDEC.

“Governments have introduced a flurry of health and safety norms to curb transmission and ensure traveler safety. While the travel industry has implemented several measures, they vary widely by cities and countries, leaving travelers confused and anxious.”