Passenger flights between London and New York could be running by Christmas

Passenger flights between London and New York could be running by Christmas if the Government gives the green light, according to Heathrow airport's CE. In an interview, John Holland-Kaye said an industry working group had drawn up plans for a trial scheme under which passengers could have a test up to 72 hours before flying and a second test on arrival at the airport. If negative, they would avoid any quarantine in the US or UK. The scheme is being considered by the Government's testing taskforce, headed by Grant Shapps, the Transport Secretary, and Matt Hancock, the Health Secretary, alongside separate plans for a single Covid test and release regime five days after arrival in the UK to slash quarantine by nine days. Holland-Kaye said he believed there was a "good chance" the London-New York trial would be backed by the taskforce after talks between the US and UK governments, adding: "We can definitely get that up and running by Christmas." Its final approval hinges on the two governments agreeing mutual recognition of the validity of each other's tests. Mr Holland-Kaye said such a deal would be a trailblazer and would be followed by other countries worldwide. He said: "It's a scaleable test with a politically and economically important market. It would be very quickly copied by the countries around the world who are looking to the UK and US for leadership." The London-New York route is the busiest in the world, accounting for 5% of all flights in and out of Heathrow. US flights overall account for 20% of Heathrow's capacity. Holland-Kaye said the US government wanted to pilot pre-departure testing and could turn to France or Germany if the UK did not go ahead. "That would be a huge setback for the UK," he added.<br/>