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Lufthansa Streamlining Testing and Document Protocols on Transatlantic Flights

Integration of health app will smooth travel and boost the pre-flight lounge experience for flyers from Frankfurt to the U.S.

April 4, 2021

As the demand and need for international travel continues to increase throughout the world, Lufthansa is heeding the call by introducing a new offer for transatlantic flights to the United States. Now, passengers leaving Germany and allowed to enter the United States, that have their Covid19 test conducted before departure with Lufthansa’s testing partner, Centogene, can receive their test results in CommonPass, an app quickly emerging as the go-to and internationally recognized health app for flyers and travelers. The Centogene lab is conveniently located right in Frankfurt Airport. This applies to all Lufthansa flights from Frankfurt to the United States, as well as the corresponding feeder flights via Frankfurt from Hamburg, Cologne, Berlin and Düsseldorf.

With this important advancement, Lufthansa is coming one-step closer in making international travel easier during these challenging times. In addition to the new digital certificate, the airline recommends that its guests continue to carry their original printed certificates with them when traveling until further notice.

Customers can download the Commonpass app from the Android or IOS App Store and then upload their test results after receiving an access code from Lufthansa, via e-mail, 72 hours before their departure. The app then automatically compares the test certificates with the current entry restrictions of the destination country and creates a travel certificate on this basis, provided it is a valid test document for the destination. The certificate only displays the relevant information, such as the test result, the test method, validity period and an hour counter since the time of testing, and thus does not reveal any other personal health information.

Lufthansa passengers who use the CommonPass app before their flights to the U.S. receive complimentary access to the Senator Lounge at Frankfurt Airport between 8 a.m. and 12:45 p.m., local time, in the morning.

CommonPass is not solely for boarding at the airport, but it also offers a cross-industry approach. In the near future, added value for travelers will be further enhanced for use to gain entry to other establishments, such as concert halls or cinemas, integrating the latest test results for entry requirements.

Lufthansa Safe Travels Protocol

On Lufthansa Group flights to and from Germany, passengers are required to wear a protective medical mask— either a surgical mask or an FFP2 mask, or mask with the KN95/N95 standard, during boarding, the flight and when leaving the aircraft. An exemption from the obligation to wear a mouth-nose mask during the flight is only possible for medical reasons, if the medical certificate is issued on a form provided by Lufthansa Group and a negative Covid19 test, not older than 48 hours at the scheduled start of the journey, is available. Still, as studies and reports have indicated, infection on board is highly unlikely. All aircraft are equipped with the highest quality air filters, and the air circulates vertically instead of dispersed throughout the cabin.