Airlines and Airports Hope Testing Will Encourage Travel

Left with a patchwork of testing options and domestic quarantines in the face of a public health crisis, travelers have had to ask themselves an odd question: Would they really get a Covid test at the airport salon that also does pedicures? XpresSpa, which calls itself the world’s largest airport spa company with more than 50 locations in 25 airports, is betting they would. That’s why it started a sister company in April, XpresCheck, which last week began offering travelers a $200 rapid Covid test with results in as little as 15 minutes, available at Newark, JFK and, soon, Boston Logan airports. Without a government mandate, airlines, airports and businesses like XpresSpa have each started their own Covid testing programs aiming to encourage travel amid the pandemic. It’s needed. This week both Delta and United Airlines announced earnings, losing a combined $15 billion since the onset of the pandemic. In Delta’s case, the airline says it doesn't expect to break even until the spring of next year. “We’re talking to all the major airports," said Doug Satzman, CEO of XpresSpa. "We’ve been operators for 15 years; we’re pretty well established with these groups.” ExpresCheck is in talks with each of the major airlines to offer its services, including bundling a test with airfare, although no deals have been made. Conceivably, if an airline could guarantee that a flight was Covid-free, travelers would feel much more comfortable boarding. “It would be great marketing,” said Satzman. Read More: Delta Has Lost Nearly $11 Billion Since the Pandemic Began Like the overhaul of airport security following the 9/11 terror attacks, Satzman believes the pandemic may have similar long-lasting impacts. “We’re building or converting our spas into long-term medical facilities. We think this is going to stay,” he said. Already, American, JetBlue, United and Hawaiian airlines have unveiled pilot testing programs, with JetBlue’s kits being delivered directly to travelers' homes before their flight. In American and United’s cases, the pilot programs are specific to leisure destinations like Hawaii and Jamaica that mandate a 14-day quarantine required, lifted only if a traveler can show a negative test. United's pilot testing program begins today for passengers leaving from San Francisco to Hawaii. It'll serve as a "blueprint" for future destinations. One constant: At all of the airlines, customers are stuck with the bill, which can be as high as $250 for a rapid test with United. Delta CEO Ed Bastian said the airline is “laying the tracks” to implement a similar testing program, but wouldn’t provide a timeline, pointing to recent global outbreaks. “When you try to put a timeline on it, one of the big wildcards is how the virus is doing, both here in the U.S. as well as in other countries, because the goal in all of this is to eliminate the need to quarantine when you get to your destination,” Bastian said. “Timing has more to do with the state of the virus and the medical containment of it than it does any specific strategy.” Even without the tests, if every passenger is seated and wearing a mask, the risk of Covid-19 exposure is "virtually nonexistent," according to the Department of Defense. "United was the first to get this done, and we're pushing to do more of that to open up international borders. We're going to need testing to make that happen, and I think that will expand and we'll look back on today and say starting testing was an important milestone," United CEO Scott Kirby said in an investors call today. The airline's executives anticipate that testing will be widely available by next spring, and that governments "around the world will adopt consistent measures to reduce or eliminate quarantines" if travelers can show a negative test. Kirby invoked Britain's World War II leader Winston Churchill twice during the call, referring to this phase of the pandemic as the "end of the beginning." Without waiting for an airline to take action, Tampa International Airport is running a pilot testing program through Oct. 31, available to all ticketed passengers. There, the rapid test is $125. Oakland's international airport is offering free tests for both the public and employees. “I’m in favor of anything and everything that can get people comfortable and back on a plane, stay in a hotel, go to a conference," said Chris Jones, CMO of the Clark County Department of Aviation, which oversees Las Vegas’ McCarran Airport. "But when you take this to scale and you’re talking about hundreds of thousands of people per day across the country, how does that work?” None of the airports in Clark County—which saw 1.3 million passengers this August—has announced a testing program. “Where do these people go?" Jones said, noting that most airports are not equipped to handle large crowds of passengers lingering for as long as it would take to test everyone and confirm their results. "The lobbies aren’t designed for this." Ultimately, Jones said he would only take directions from health officials—who have been largely silent since the start of the pandemic. This was most glaring in late spring, when airlines became the enforcers of their own mask policies without the ability to lean on federal guidelines. Although testing gives airlines and airports another arrow in their marketing quiver, it might not sway uncertain travelers. According to a July survey of business and leisure passengers conducted by Atmosphere Research, when asked what actions would make them feel most comfortable, in-airport health tests fell behind constant cleaning and mask requirements. “Travelers want and need confidence about flying,” said Henry Harteveldt, a travel analyst and president of Atmosphere Research. “This is a patchwork approach, but it's a patchwork approach born out of necessity. We’ve not seen the U.S. government take the lead on developing standards.” Harteveldt believes the airlines are still in a testing phase, as each rolls out its own program. “My expectation is that there will be some results sharing amongst the airlines about how the tests worked, whether they were effective, whether partners lived up to service levels,” he said. Even though it doesn’t yet have a testing program in place, Delta’s emphasis on its cleaning policies and communications, as well as its commitment to blocking middle seats, has been its marketing north star. The ban on middle seats (quickly followed by Southwest and JetBlue) was never adopted by United, and was ditched by American in June. “When you think about what we’ve done with the brand and the seating, the cleanliness and the protocols we’ve put in place, it’s all about building consumer confidence,” said Delta president Glen Hauenstein. Analysts with JPMorgan have told investors they continue to “view Delta as the industry leader,” with the strongest balance sheet of “any legacy carrier in the history of the industry.” Still, they acknowledge that recovery for the big three—Delta, American and United—won’t happen meaningfully until 2022. American is set to release its quarterly earnings Oct. 22.

Coronavirus

Airlines and Airports Hope to Encourage Travel With Testing

As carriers report dismal earnings, their pandemic response is key with passengers

Ryan Barwick

About

Subscriptions

Events

Publications

WORK SMARTER - LEARN, GROW AND BE INSPIRED.

Subscribe today!

Ryan Barwick