Airports Council International (ACI) World and ACI EUROPE have announced that Istanbul Airport is the first airport to be accredited through its new Airport Health Accreditation programme.

ACI’s Airport Health Accreditation programme assists airports by assessing new health measures and procedures introduced as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in accordance with ICAO Council Aviation Restart Task Force recommendations and in alignment with the joint EASA and ECDC Aviation Health Safety Protocol and ACI EUROPE’s Guidelines for a Healthy Passenger Experience at Airports.

Topics covered by the accreditation include cleaning and disinfection, physical distancing (where feasible and practical), staff protection, physical layout, passenger communications and passenger facilities.

“I am very impressed in how the industry has swiftly adapted to new realities to introduce new protocols based on globally-consistent protocols,” said Luis Felipe de Oliveira, ACI World Director-General.

“We congratulate Istanbul for being the first airport to be accredited through our new Airport Health Accreditation programme which demonstrates that they are focused on the health and welfare of travellers, staff, and the public. This will be crucial as our industry begins to restart and then prepare to sustain continuing operations, providing to passengers and employees high globally-recognized standards on health and hygiene, which will help to restore public confidence in air travel.”

Commitment to safety under new normal

Kadri Samsunlu, Chief Executive Officer at İGA Airport Operation Inc, said Istanbul Airport is committed to "continuous improvement" aimed at ensuring flight safety amid the coronavirus.

"We continue our efforts to offer our passengers ‘safe travel at maximum hygiene’ in the new normal," he added, noting that the airport has earlier already received various health-related certifications in connection to COVID-19.

ACI noted that the Airport Health Accreditation is important to ensure that the aviation industry is in the "finest possible position to support strong recovery in the near future."

"Aviation is a very resilient industry and we need to take measures to endure through the impact of COVID-19 through implementing strict health and safety standards at our facilities and operations," it said.

ACI noted that the Airport Health Accreditation certificate should be considered by all airport operators as proof to demonstrate greater readiness to build passenger confidence and trust.

"The fact that Istanbul Airport is the holder of international certificates in terms of health proves that it is always our top priority to ensure the health and safety of our passengers and employees. Considering that Istanbul Airport is the world’s global hub, the award ... is also proof that our measures are all at international standards,” Samsunlu of Istanbul Airport said.

Safe airport operations 

Meanwhile, Olivier Jankovec, Director General, ACI EUROPE commented: “Recovery from this unprecedented crisis has called for the swift and thorough implementation across the entire aviation system of the global standards developed jointly by competent authorities."

"ACI has worked hand in hand with ICAO, EASA and ECDC to help deliver a blueprint for safe airport operations amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This blueprint, which has served as the basis for ACI EUROPE’s Guidelines for a Healthy Passenger Experience at Airports, is now complemented by a new Airport Health Accreditation programme."