British Airways, American Airlines and oneworld are to offer passengers on certain flights between three US cities and London a series of Covid-19 tests in ¡°a combined effort to scientifically demonstrate how Covid-19 testing can reopen international travel and remove the need for passengers to quarantine on arrival¡±.

The trial involves passengers on selected flights from JFK, Dallas Fort Worth and Los Angeles to London Heathrow taking three, free of charge tests at various intervals: one taken pre-departure at home, one on arrival and a third carried out three days after arrival.?

The first test, taken 72 hours before departure from the US, is an at-home RT-PCR test provided by LetsGetChecked. Passengers will self-collect a nasal sample under the virtual supervision of medical professionals.

On landing at Heathrow, passengers will take a LAMP test, provided by Collinson, involving the collection of a nasal sample by a medical professional.

Those tested will then be given a saliva sample kit for use at home three days after arrival.

The free tests will initially be offered to eligible customers booked on American Airlines flight AA50 departing Dallas/Fort Worth (DFW) to LHR; British Airways flight BA114 departing New York's John F Kennedy Airport (JFK) to LHR; and British Airways flight BA268 from Los Angeles (LAX) to LHR, beginning on 25 November. The test will be expanded to American Airlines flight AA106 from JFK to LHR at a later date.

Unlike the United Airlines tests that started today, the tests will not be compulsory for everyone on the flight.?
If a volunteer tests positive in the new trial, they will need to reschedule or cancel their travel. As with other trials, those testing negative will not be exempt from UK quarantine.

The airlines said the three-test approach is intended to validate a customer's negative status for Covid-19 throughout the travel journey and will ¡°provide insight into the most effective and practical testing interval¡±.?

The third test is intended to demonstrate that one or two tests will be sufficient to allow travel to safely restart, the airlines said. The results of the trial will be provided to both the US and UK governments and other stakeholders.

British Airways¡¯ CEO Sean Doyle said: "We know people want to travel but our skies remain all but closed and the UK is being left behind. Major economies like Germany are adopting testing to replace quarantine.

"We need the UK government to introduce a system that allows travellers to take reliable, affordable tests before departure, so they are confident that fellow passengers are Covid-free. For people arriving from countries with high infection rates, a further test on arrival should then release them from quarantine.

Chairman and chief executive of American Airlines, Doug Parker, said: "American has already successfully introduced a pre-flight Covid-19 testing programme for customers travelling from the US to international destinations across the Caribbean and Latin America. We have received tremendous feedback from our customers in response to testing, as it provides peace of mind for safe and enjoyable travel.

"The UK is a critically important business and leisure destination that our customers want to visit. We believe the results provided by this trial will be vital for reopening transatlantic travel safely."

Oneworld CEO Rob Gurney said: "We believe that Covid-19 testing will play an important role in safely restarting international travel. A comprehensive testing programme will provide governments the confidence to reduce or waive quarantine requirements and safely reopen their economies to international visitors, while further assuring customers that their health and well-being are protected."

Before the Covid-19 pandemic, American Airlines and British Airways flew to more than 30 destinations in the US from London. Today, the carriers are flying a fraction of that figure. Previously, the carriers operated up to 111 flights a week from London to New York; now they operate 14 flights per week combined, between the two cities.

American Airlines recently cancelled a number of services from US cities to the UK until 2021 due to low demand.?

The airline told BTN Europe: ¡°We will not operate flights from Charlotte (CLT), New York (JFK) and Chicago (ORD) to London (LHR) in December. We will operate cargo flights to LHR from JFK and ORD until daily passenger service resumes in January. Three times weekly service between CLT and LHR will resume on 6 January. Customers in ORD and JFK can continue to travel to LHR on American¡¯s joint business partner, British Airways.¡±