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First passengers take Covid-tested flights from US to Milan

Travellers from New York arrived in Italy's Milan Malpensa airport on the route's first Covid-tested and "quarantine-free" flight on Saturday.

Published: 4 April 2021 11:42 CEST
First passengers take Covid-tested flights from US to Milan
A passenger looks on at Malpensa Airport in Milan, on 3 April 2021 after disembarking from the first "Covid-tested" and "quarantine-free" flight from New York to northern Italy. (Photo by Piero Cruciatti / AFP)

The biggest airport in northern Italy has now begun its flight schedule of Covid-tested flights from the United States, making passengers exempt from the 14 days of self-isolation normally required.

“It is the first ever flight from New York since the end of March 2020. It took a year to restart this crucial connection for people and the economy,” said Armando Brunini, CEO of SEA Milan Airports, in a press conference.

“We hope that restrictions will be loosened as soon as possible: if they are safe flights, we must allow their use also for those who fly for tourism,” he added.

READ ALSO: How soon can Italy hope to restart tourism this summer?

Armando Brunini, CEO of SEA Milan Airports, talks to journalists at Malpensa Airport in Milan on April 3rd 2021, after the first “Covid-tested” and “quarantine-free” flight landed from New York to northern Italy. Passengers were tested by healthcare workers for Covid-19 upon disembarking. (Photo by Piero Cruciatti / AFP)

Around 100 people arrived from the Big Apple following the Italian Health Ministry’s decision to permit travellers to enter Italy on these Covid-tested services.

Passengers have already been taking such special quarantine-free flights to Rome Fiumicino airport. But the Ministry extended the scheme to Italy’s second-largest airport with a date set until at least the end of June 2021, as stated in a circular issued on March 10th.

To be permitted on the flight, passengers must test negative in a rapid antigen test for coronavirus no more than 48 hours before boarding and they must get tested again immediately on arrival.

An airport hostess waits to assist passengers going through a test area to undergo a rapid antigen swab test for Covid-19 at Malpensa Airport in Milan on April 3rd 2021, after disembarking from the first “Covid-tested” and “quarantine-free” flight from New York to northern Italy. (Photo by Piero Cruciatti / AFP)

Those wishing to travel must also fill in a digital location form before boarding, the Digital Passenger Locator Form (dPLF).

After completion of this document, passengers receive an email with a QR code, which must be given at the check-in desk in order to be allowed on the flight.

Also during check-in, travellers must provide a completed self-declaration form, specific just to these Covid-tested flights, which states why you are entering Italy from abroad.

A medical worker shows a Covid-19 rapid antigen test, in the test area at Malpensa Airport. (Photo by Piero Cruciatti / AFP)

There’s more paperwork still. Upon landing in Italy, travellers must present another self-declaration form to the police. Again, this relates to Covid-tested flights only.

READ ALSO: 

A passenger undergoes a swab test for Covid-19 at Malpensa Airport in Milan.  (Photo by Piero Cruciatti / AFP)

At present, the travel scheme between the United States and Milan covers passengers coming from New York (JFK) on Delta Air Lines flight DL 118 and American Airlines flight AA198.

International travel into and out of Italy is still restricted, with rules varying according to country of origin. But, there are hopes that tourism will resume this summer throughout Europe with the anticipated EU “health passport”.

For the latest updates on travel to Italy, see here.

Member comments

  1. Can the flights be used in the other direction (i.e. Italian residents visiting the US for leisure purposes) or is it strictly for US residents visiting Italy?

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EES PASSPORT CHECKS

EES border checks could undergo ‘soft launch’, UK says as app concerns mount

The UK government is preparing for a "soft launch" of the new EU border system – the Entry/Exit (EES) system - in October but authorities are still waiting for European Commission to confirm the start date, amid concerns over the delay of a new app.

Published: 4 May 2024 09:30 CEST
EES border checks could undergo 'soft launch', UK says as app concerns mount

The UK government is preparing for a soft launch of the new EU border system – the entry/exit (EES) system – on the assumption that it will go live on October 6th, ministers told a hearing at the House of Commons European scrutiny committee this week.

But the European Commission is expected to confirm the exact launch date of the new biometric checks for non-EU travellers entering the Schengen area at some point this summer, they added.

“We are very much working on a basis whereby this policy will go live on the 6th of October. It is important that we plan for that eventuality. We are expecting to hear definitively from the European Union that ‘go live’ arrangement in the summer,” Tom Pursglove, UK Minister for Legal Migration and the Border told the committee.

The parliamentary committee is conducting an inquiry on the disruptions the system will cause in the UK.

Pursglove also said that “precautionary measures” have been agreed by the EU, that will be put in place in certain circumstances after the start of EES, for example if delays at the borders exceeded a certain length of time.

Guy Opperman, Under-Secretary of State at the Department for Transport, said that in practice this meant a “soft launch” of EES for 6 months before “a full go live”. During that soft launch EU member states and the UK could deploy flexibility measures should problems occur.

“The likelihood is, after multiple delays, that the 6th of October will proceed” and the implementation looks “very different” compared to previous scenarios considering the flexibility allowed in the first 6 months, he argued.

No details were given on what these “flexible” measures would involve however. 

READ ALSO: Your questions answered about Europe’s EES passport checks

He conceded that “a lot of work” still needs to be done but the UK “should be as ready as everybody” and “better be at front of the queue”.

App not ready

During the meeting, it also emerged that a much-anticipated app that would allow remote pre-registration of non-EU citizens subject to the checks will not be available for testing until August “at best”, prompting concerns about the EES launch date.

“You don’t need to be a sceptic about future projects to think that the provision of the app in August for going live in October is optimistic,” Opperman said.

Ministers confirmed that the app will not be ready in time for October and the committee previously stated it might be delayed until summer 2025.

The app will facilitate pre-registration, but photo and fingerprints will still have to be taken at the border in front of a guard, the committee heard.

READ ALSO: How do the EU’s new EES passport checks affect the 90-day rule?

Several MPs asked whether the entry into operation of the EES should be delayed again if technology is not ready. But Under-Secretary Opperman said the app “is not going to be a panacea to fix all problems”.

The main aim of EES is to increase security and to ensure that non-EU nationals visiting the Schengen area for a short-term do not stay more than 90 days in any 180-day period.

The entry into operation of the system has already been delayed several times and there have been calls from certain travel companies and national authorities to delay it again.

Under the new scheme, non-EU/EFTA travellers who do not need a visa will have to register their biometric data (finger prints and facial images) in a database that will also record each time they enter and exit the Schengen area.

Instead of having passports manually stamped, travellers will have to scan them at self-service kiosks before crossing the border. However, fingerprints and a photo will have to be registered in front of a guard at the first crossing and there are concerns the extra time needed will generate long queues, especially in Dover, Folkestone and St. Pancras station in London, where there are juxtaposed French and UK border checks.

Progress in preparations

Minister Pursglove also updated MPs on ongoing preparations. He said some testing of the system will take place within days, 5 kiosks have been installed at St. Pancras station and are available for testing. “You are beginning to see the physical infrastructure appear,” he said.

Kiosks and extra lanes are also being created at the port Dover and it was agreed with the EU passengers travelling by coach will be checked away from the Eastern dock, where controls usually take place, allowing to gain space. The vehicles will then sealed and drive on the ferries.

MPs also discussed the infrastructure cost linked to the introduction of the EES. Opperman said all EU countries will have to make “huge investments” in their ports. In the UK, he argued, this will help “address problems that have existed for some time”. Because of this “massive investment”, in a few years time “Dover will be totally transformed,” he said.

This article is published in cooperation with Europe Street News.

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