Pre-flight Covid-19 testing possible at Cork and Dublin airports by mid-October

The proposed traffic light system would allow for the free movement of people travelling from green and orange coded areas, with a testing regime to be considered for countries coded red. Picture: Eddie O'Hare

Pre-departure Covid-19 testing at Dublin and Cork airports could be made available to passengers by mid-October with government assistance, the Oireachtas Transport Committee has heard.

Dalton Philips, CEO of daa, which operates Dublin and Cork Airports, told the Oireachtas Transport Committee this morning that the airports have the capability to deliver up to 15,000 pre-departure PCR tests per day should the Government adopt the European Commission’s traffic light system.

The proposed traffic light system would allow for the free movement of people travelling from green and orange coded areas, with a testing regime to be considered for countries coded red.

Mr Philips said daa’s research indicates that pre-departure testing reduces the risk of importation of the virus by more than 80%.

Dalton Philips said they have the capability to deliver up to 15,000 pre-departure PCR tests per day.

“Ultimately however, Government needs to approve a rapid turnaround, low cost, scalable testing solution for use in Irish airports so that we can move quickly as the market introduces products better suited to airport operations, for example LAMP or antigen testing,” he said.

This would allow work to begin “on re-connecting Ireland to the world” and “re-building the businesses and livelihoods that depend on that connectivity” he said. 

Mary Considine, CEO of Shannon Group which operates Shannon Airport echoed the daa's calls stating: “Testing instead of the restriction of movements has to be the way forward.”

Minister of State for Transport Hildegarde Naughton said it is understandable the aviation sector is proposing antigen testing as the preferred option for testing given its “relatively cheaper price and quicker turnaround time.” 

“However antigen-based testing is not considered by the World Health Organization, to be suitable for an international travel testing context,” she said.

While she acknowledged the daa has carried out research into other types of testing, she said their application “is not yet fully validated.”

Ms Naughton also referred to the fact the current advice is "not to travel outside your county." 

She said the Government has to to be realistic “in relation to where we stand at a health level" and declined to provide a date at which a testing regime could be introduced in any of Ireland’s airports. 

Minister for Transport Eamon Ryan said while the latest information from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control and the World Health Organisation is that antigen testing "may not yet be at the stage where it will give us real security in the international travel arena," should this information change "then we should use it."