United to Become First US Airline Testing Passengers for COVID-19

United Airlines became the first carrier in the United States to offer a coronavirus testing program to passengers.

Travelers flying to Hawaii from San Francisco International Airport will have the option to take rapid-response COVID-19 tests to avoid quarantine requirements beginning on October 15.

Hawaii is also scheduled to lift a two-week quarantine requirement on arriving travelers on October 15, as long as they test negative for coronavirus within 72 hours of their departure. United passengers will be responsible for payment, but prices have not been announced yet.

The tests will be conducted in the international terminal and results will be known within about 15 minutes. Both United and Delta Air Lines have utilized rapid coronavirus tests for their crew members.

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The long-term goal of the COVID-19 testing pilot program is to provide an opening for passengers to enter regions currently off-limits due to concerns regarding the ongoing viral pandemic.

“We are very interested in opening this up to other destinations,” United’s California president Janet Lamkin said.

Earlier this week, German airline Lufthansa became the first airline in the world to announce plans to start making rapid COVID-19 antigen tests available to its passengers.

The carrier is also considering opening testing centers at select airports in the U.S. and Canada.