Doha: Hamad International Airport (HIA) is the first entity in the world to achieve independent verification from BSI (British Standards Institution) for its implementation of Covid-19 ICAO Aviation Health Safety Protocols.
The verification was conducted following successful audits for Compliance to International Civil Aviation Organization Civil Aviation Recovery Taskforce ICAO CART.
Qatar’s airport received the verification certificate during an official handover ceremony attended by Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, Akbar Al Baker, Jon Wilks, Her Majesty’s Ambassador to the State of Qatar, Abdulla bin Nasser Turki Al-Subaey, President of the Qatar Civil Aviation Authority, HIA’s Chief Operation Officer, Engr. Badr Mohammed Al-Meer, Jamal Dalli, Business Development Manager at BSI, among other BSI officials and executives from MATAR Qatar Company for Airports Management and Operation.
This important achievement marks the State of Qatar as the first country in the world to be verified by BSI for its COVID-19 Aviation Health Safety Protocol Implementation.
“This Verification of Compliance is a testament to the airport’s commitment to maintaining business efficiency during the COVID-19 pandemic while implementing unprecedented measures to protect its staff and passengers in compliance with guidelines issued by the International Civil Aviation Organization’s (ICAO) Civil Aviation Recovery Taskforce (CART),” HIA statement said.
The airport was awarded based on a compliance verification audit conducted by BSI to assess guidelines implemented by the airport during the pandemic and will be maintained via a continued verification that will be conducted to ensure this compliance is maintained over time.
Qatar’s airport has taken swift and comprehensive steps to curb the spread of COVID-19. The airport’s protocols and procedures have changed drastically to adapt to the different needs of passengers. To ensure the health and wellbeing of its staff and passengers, HIA also introduced a series of unprecedented measures including the implementation of robotics and advanced thermal screening helmets.
HIA continues to maintain a 1.5m physical distancing across all passenger touchpoints around the airport, through floor markings, signage and distanced seating. All passenger touchpoints are sanitized every 10-15 minutes. All gates and bus gate counters are being cleaned after each flight. HIA’s retail and food and beverage outlets encourage contactless and cashless transactions through cards and are considering introducing online or in-app purchases in the future. The airport also conducts regular disinfection of all baggage trolleys and tubs.
HIA has recently become one of the few airports to introduce paperless air travel through its investments in facial biometric identification. The technology combines passenger’s flight, passport, and facial biometric information in a ‘single travel token’ at the self-check-in kiosk. This has enabled passengers to use biometric-enabled check-in kiosks to take their photo and scan their passport and boarding pass. This digital identity record makes the passenger’s face their pass at key airport touchpoints, such as self-service bag-drop, pre-immigration, e-Gate and self-boarding gates. The visionary approach and early investment in biometric identification technology have proved to be an extremely efficient tool in the airport’s battle against COVID-19, allowing departing passengers to move through key touchpoints with minimal physical contact.
The airport also installed C2 technology for transferring passengers. This security screening system allows transferring travellers the freedom to move through security checkpoints without having to take out any electronic devices from their bags and is a significant counter COVID-19 measure that reduces possible cross-contamination in passenger carry-on bags. The implementation of the technology elevates the airport’s hygiene standards, by limiting human contact at the security checkpoints, making the process safer and faster for both staff and passengers.
BSI has maintained a fruitful history with Qatar’s airport. The organization recently confirmed HIA’s ISO 22301:2012 Business Continuity Management System Certification, making it one of the first airports in the world to achieve this. This achievement is proof that the airport is operationally resilient and is able to continue its operations while reducing the likelihood of disruptions in the face of an unprecedented crisis like the COVID-19.