Australia airline boss wants vaccine passport for travelers

boss of Australia's largest airline said Monday that once a coronavirus vaccine becomes widely available, it may require passengers use it before y can travel abro.

Qantas Chief Executive Alan Joyce said he's been talking to his counterparts at or airlines around world about possibility of a “vaccination passport” for overseas travelers.

“We are looking at changing terms and conditions to say for international travelers that we will ask people to have vaccination before y get on aircraft,” Joyce told Australia's Network Nine television.

Australia has imposed some of most severe border restrictions in world since pandemic began. It has closed its borders to most international visitors and only allowed its own citizens to travel internationally under special circumstances.

Those restrictions have helped nation of 26 million people tame its outbreak. Australia has reported nearly 28,000 cases and just over 900 deaths since pandemic began, fewer than many or nations of its size.

Joyce said creating a vaccination passport for inbound and outbound travelers to and from Australia would require a lot of thought and logistics, and may need government intervention.

“But certainly for international visitors coming out and people leaving (Australia), we think that’s a necessity," he told Nine.

“What we are looking at is how you can have a vaccination passport, an electronic version of it, that certifies what vaccine is, is it acceptable to country you are traveling to."

Australian Health Minister Greg Hunt told reporters Tuesday re h t been a decision on border or re-entry rules around potential vaccines.

“Our task is to provide vaccine to all Australians,” he said.

Several companies have been testing virus vaccines with encouraging early results. Many are hoping that vaccinations will become widely available next year, paving way for a broer reopening of international air travel.

(Im Credit: AP)