Americans might soon be able to travel to the United Kingdom

International travelers are required to be tested before and after their flights

Oct 11, 2020

Flights between New York City and London may be possible during the holiday season.

U.S. officials are interested in reopening international travel between the two popular destinations.

President Donald Trump‘s administration is looking into a way to deliver passengers safety due to the availability of widespread coronavirus testing, according to The Wall Street Journal.

“The growing availability of Covid-19 tests in the U.S. has prompted officials at the Transportation Department, Department of Homeland Security and other agencies to revive efforts to establish safe travel corridors between the U.S. and international destinations,” the Journal reported its sources said.

International travelers are required to be tested before and after their flights.

A Boeing 737 MAX airplane piloted by FAA Chief Steve Dickson lands Boeing Field to conclude a test flight, on September 30, 2020 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Stephen Brashear/Getty Images)

However, the increase in infection rates in America presents an issue.

“Limited availability of testing in the U.S. earlier this year and long wait times for test results stalled previous efforts to open international travel,” the Journal reported.

“U.S. government and aviation-industry officials involved in the planning talks cited one big obstacle in negotiations with foreign leaders over easing travel restrictions, even with testing: America’s persistently high Covid-19 infection rates. The U.S. and the U.K. have both experienced recent upticks in infections, and the U.S. had more than 56,000 new cases of Covid-19 on Thursday.”

United States travelers are prohibited from entering the European Union (EU), and if they do, they are instructed to be quarantined for about 2 weeks, The New York Post reported.

Permanent residents and U.S. citizens quarantined in the EU are allowed to returned to the states.

If the initiative were to happen in the winter, there is no telling how many people are at risk of getting infected.

As the Transportation Department told the Journal, the agency is prepared to support the initiative moving forward.

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