Scan To Show You're Fit To Fly

The digital V-Health Passport has been designed for cross border travel by air while securing passenger data

- Vinita Bhatia

Since 23rd March, international passenger services in India have been suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic. However, special international flights began operating after May, on the basis of bilateral 'air bubble' arrangements that the country inked with 20 nations. Under this pact, special international flights can be operated by airlines of two countries between their territories.

It is mandatory for passengers taking these flights to have a COVID-19 negative report. Most airports in India opened a testing facility on their premises for outgoing and incoming passengers.

Despite these measures, Indian airlines were blamed for carrying COVID-19 positive passengers. The Dubai Civil Aviation Authority even asked Air India Express to reject COVID-19 reports from four labs in the country, after their negative reports proved to be false.

As international travel started picking up, there has been an alarming rise in the sale of fake COVID-19 test certificates, especially in Russia, the Middle East, Brazil, France and the UK. In November, French officials apprehended a group of people selling counterfeit test certificates at Paris’s Charles de Gaulle airport. According to media reports, the miscreants were demanding $180 to $360 to give them digital certificates of a negative result.

These practices underline that passengers are willing to travel with a manipulated document. It also exposes the massive health risk as passengers with these fake certificates can infect other travellers on what should ideally be a COVID-safe bubble onboard an aircraft. To tackle this challenge, British cyber technology company, VST Enterprises (VSTE), has launched a ‘Fit to Fly’ secure health passport. The V- Health Passport, which can be downloaded from the Apple App Store or Google Play, has been designed for cross border travel by air, land and sea.