Starting February 1st, 2021, United customers traveling to Hawaii and have a valid Negative COVID-19 test can show the documents before boarding and skip document screening upon arrival.
On Wednesday (January 27, 2021), United Airlines announced the expansion of their testing and pre-clearance program for customers traveling to Hawaii. From February 1st, guests traveling to Hawaii from one of United’s hub airports can show a valid negative COVID-19 test prior to boarding and skip the document screening lines upon arrival. The streamlined process will be available for customers traveling on any of United’s 110 weekly flights to Hawaii. The carrier is also making it easier for customers, regardless of where in the U.S. their travel begins, to get an approved test, so they can avoid Hawaii’s mandatory 14-day quarantine requirement.
In Wednesday’s announcement, United Airlines’ Chief Customer Officer, Toby Enqvist, said,
“We're making it easier for customers traveling to Hawaii to spend more time enjoying their trip and less time waiting in lines. Testing is the key to opening domestic and international travel, so we'll continue to lead the way in rolling out solutions that are simple and safe, so our customers have what they need when they take their next trip with us.”
The pre-clearance process begins with online enrollment in Hawaii’s Safe Travels program and completion of the COVID-19 questionnaire within 24 hours of departure. Next, guests will use the Safe Travels website to upload a negative COVID-19 test result from one of Hawaii’s trusted testing partners, which must be taking within 72 hours prior to departure. Once at the airport, customers will see a United team member at the gate for their Hawaii flight and receive a wristband if they qualify to bypass screening in Hawaii. Guests who have been pre-cleared can begin their Hawaii vacation immediately, without further screening.
United has also made it easier for customers to obtain an approved COVID-19 test with an expansion of mail-in tests nationwide. Customers traveling to Hawaii will be notified by the carrier in advance of their trip with local testing options. Last year, United also teamed with XpresCheck to open additional same-day testing at select United airports. The service is currently available in Denver and will be expanded to Houston and Newark in the coming weeks. Customers selecting same-day testing can schedule an appointment online for a rapid molecular test.
United Airlines’ shared purpose is ‘Connecting People. Uniting the World.’ Shares in the company’s parent, United Airlines Holdings, Inc., are publicly traded on the NASDAQ under the symbol ‘UAL’.
Source: United Airlines