On Tuesday, a corona rapid test station was set up in Terminal 3 of Vienna Airport. As part of a trial run that Austrian Airlines would like to offer on selected routes within Europe, use should initially be free of charge. However, the airline did not give an exact date for the start, because the official approvals are still pending.

“Together with Vienna Airport, Austrian Airlines is soon planning a trial operation in which passengers can use rapid COVID-19 antigen tests. In this trial run, passengers on a selected European route are to be given the opportunity to carry out rapid tests voluntarily and free of charge. As part of the test, procedures and processes are to be checked. The findings would then be used to design the test offer, ”said a spokeswoman for Austrian Airlines.

The on-site procedure is as follows: First, passengers scan their boarding pass and enter some additional data via a touchscreen. The sample is then taken and the rapid test carried out. The result should be known within ten minutes. With this period of time, advertising is clearly visible on the test station's banners. The offer will be located shortly before the boarding pass control in Terminal 3 of Vienna Airport.

At the moment, however, a negative rapid test result does not make entry easier. The prerequisites for this have not yet been created within the EU, as uniform rules are required. Specifically, this means that a negative PCR test must still be submitted in many countries. Whether something will change in this practice or not: That is still completely open. In any case, Austrian Airlines and Vienna Airport want to be ready and are therefore testing the processes. In particular, the practical suitability with regard to the integration into the processes that passengers go through before departure is to be evaluated. The first tests have already been carried out, but not with passengers, but with employees of Austrian Airlines and Vienna Airport.

By the way, an exact date for the start of the trial operation with AUA passengers has not yet been set. However, there are plans to address passengers on selected routes, who can then take an antigen rapid test in Terminal 3 at Vienna Airport on a voluntary basis and free of charge. The knowledge that will then be gained should flow into the further development of the offer. With regard to the costs that could arise after the official start, neither the airport nor Austrian Airlines made any statements.

The goal, however, is crystal clear: a negative rapid test should serve as a substitute for PCR tests and enable passengers to enter the country as well as free them from quarantine. There will still be a long way to go before that happens, because the legal basis for this must be created both at the EU level and in the respective nation states. In addition, approval for the test procedure must first be granted in Austria, but according to the ministry this should be ready soon.

If the rapid antigen test at Vienna Airport is positive, a PCR test can be arranged in consultation with the Bruck an der Leitha district administration. However, the decision on this is always the responsibility of the health department. In general, the strategy that airlines and airports are striving for across Europe is simple: Anyone who is negative in rapid tests is allowed to fly and should be allowed to enter without quarantine and those who are positive must stay at home for further clarification. Now it is the turn of politics, which still has to agree a legal basis and agreements with other states or at EU level for the plans.