In encouraging news for international travel, American Airlines is increasing its Summer schedule by restarting ten routes to the US from airports in the UK and Europe. These include flights from major travel hubs including Barcelona El Prat, Dublin, Frankfurt, London Heathrow, Madrid Barajas, Milan Malpensa, Paris Charles de Gaulle and Rome Fiumicino. As part of American’s alliance with Alaska …

Yesterday Spain became the fifth country in Europe to legalise assisted suicide and euthanasia for long-suffering patients of incurable diseases and people with unbearable permanent conditions. The Spanish parliament’s lower house voted 202-140 with two abstentions on the final passage of the euthanasia bill. MPs from Spain’s left-wing governing coalition and other parties supported it, while conservative and far-right lawmakers …

New analysis reinforces that lateral flow tests are accurate and reliable and have extremely low false positive rates. New analysis of community testing data shows lateral flow tests to have a specificity of at least 99.9% This means fewer than one false positive in every 1,000 lateral flow tests carried out New analysis published today shows lateral flow tests (LFD) …

The European Commission has laid out proposals to create a Digital Green Certificate to facilitate “safe free movement” within the EU during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Digital Green Certificate will act as proof a person has been vaccinated against Covid-19, received a negative test result or recovered from having had the virus. It will record if a person has received a Covid-19 …

Virgin Atlantic is urging the reopening of UK and US borders to enable vital transatlantic flights to resume. The call came exactly a year since the US closed its borders to UK and Irish citizens and the week that the airline secured £160 million in additional funding in the face of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. North Atlantic routes represented around 70% of …

Travel to and within the European Union this summer could be opened up if Brussels agrees plans today (Wednesday) for Covid-19 vaccine certificates. The European Commission’s plan for a ‘digital green certificate’ will be a proof of vaccination, immunity and test results, preventing the need for quarantines or travel bans. Spain, Greece, Italy and other Mediterranean countries will be able …

Heathrow Airport CEO Emma Gilthorpe told MPs the wait for processing at border points is at an ‘unacceptable level’ with waits of up to six hours. Gilthorpe told the Home Affairs Select Committee ‘the level of complexity of the processes’ is causing huge bottlenecks. Due to specific protocols, all of Heathrow’s self-service e-gates at passport control are currently closed. International …

Ministers are being urged to maintain the May 17 deadline for the resumption of international travel as laid out in the government’s Covid-19 roadmap. A delay to the restart date will see airlines and airports continue to suffer, the government has been warned. MPs on the Commons transport committee said that the initial target date of May 17 for restarting …

Ryanair has officially launched its Covid-19 Travel Wallet, where customers can upload details of Covid documents such as negative PCR tests, vaccination certificates. The budget carrier, which has already said it would roll out such a system, said the wallet is only available in the Ryanair app. The UK government’s Global Travel Taskforce is discussing whether a form of health certification …

Spain’s tourism minister said Tuesday that the government plans to start reopening the country’s tourism sector when 30-40% of the Spanish population is vaccinated against the coronavirus. Speaking to local broadcaster Canal Sur, Maria Reyes Maroto said the government expects this could be achieved by spring and that she was “optimistic” about the summer tourism season. “In April, we’ll receive …

UK cruise lines will be able to restart domestic sailings on May 17, maritime minister Robert Courts has told a group of MPs. The disclosure came as he appeared at a virtual meeting of the All Party Parliamentary Maritime and Ports Group (APPMPG). The group tweeted: **NEWS** Maritime Minister @robertcourts announces the reopening of the domestic #cruise market in England …

The boss of Melia Hotels International has backed plans to create safe travel corridors between the UK and Spain. Gabriel Escarrer, executive vice chairman and chief executive of Spain’s largest hotel company, called for destinations and source markets share “consistently thorough” security standards and controls. He argued that travel restrictions have been enforced without any scientific basis, adding: “We know …