United Airlines will offer free COVID-19 rapid tests to passengers between the New York area and London as part of a four-week trial program, the airline announced on Thursday.
The testing will run from Nov. 16 through Dec. 11 on select dates for 12 flights from Newark Liberty International Airport to London Heathrow Airport. All travelers, including crew members, over the age of 2 will be required to take the test.
The tests are expected to provide results within about 30 minutes and will be administered near the gate. Appointments will be required and booked in advance, and United suggests passengers allow at least three hours between the appointment and departure time.
“If you receive a positive test result, you won’t be able to fly at that time and should contact your local healthcare provider. Following CDC guidelines, United will re-book you once you test negative and are no longer symptomatic,” United announced. Passengers who refuse the test will also not be able to board.
United announced in September it would offer nonmandatory rapid tests at the San Francisco airport for flights to Hawaii, but passengers were required to pay for it.
Airlines for America, of which United is a member, and other travel industry groups called on the Trump administration last week to pursue an approach to COVID-19 testing that would obviate the need for quarantines and travel bans in order to safely reopen travel.
The groups suggested that state governors and international governments should work together and said that the current patchwork of rules is “confusing and discourages travel.”