New Covid test centre to open at Gatwick Airport

A new Covid-19 screening centre is to be opened at Gatwick Airport.
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And the centre will offer fast tests for the general public and local residents as well as air travellers and airport staff.

It will open on Monday November 30 within the airport’s long stay car park at the south terminal.

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The airport has teamed up with ExpressTest, a division of Cignpost Diagnostics, to launch the new screening service which promises results the following day.

New Covid screening tests are being launched at GatwickNew Covid screening tests are being launched at Gatwick
New Covid screening tests are being launched at Gatwick

Tests for the general public will cost £99 while air passenghers and airport staff will pay a subsidised rate of £60.

Gatwick chief executive officer Stewart Wingate said: “Reducing the spread of Covid-19 is a priority for us alongside giving confidence to so many people who have missed travelling during this difficult year.

“Our new screening facility is also a convenient service to offer people in the region looking for extra reassurance.

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“We are pleased to be subsidising the price for our passengers and any staff based at Gatwick so they are compliant with current destination requirements that many airlines including easyJet, British Airways and TUI fly to.

“Our industry has been decimated by the pandemic and, while we welcome the anticipated ‘test and release’ scheme from the Government, we want to see an internationally agreed pre-departure testing regime, based on existing risk criteria, to replace the current uncertainty of quarantine and patchwork of testing approaches which currently exists across Europe.

“A truly international approach would safely open up most of the UK’s travel routes abroad, while also helping to reduce transmission of the virus.”

ExpressTest founder Nick Markham added: “We are delighted to be Gatwick Airport’s official screening partner.

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“We launched ExpressTest to give people peace of mind, whether that’s enabling travel through our Fit to Fly certificates, or providing the reassurance needed to safely visit friends and family abroad or within the UK.

“In the next couple of months we aim to have more than 30 locations operating across the UK, with the ambition of giving the British public the confidence to go about their daily lives in these uncertain times.”

The company says the tests will be carried out by specially trained screening practitioners and that lab-analysed test results will be emailed or texted to people ‘typically the next day’ with airline passengers advised to schedule a test 48-96 hours before their departure time as a precaution.

Bookings open from Friday November 27 with the first test available on Monday November 30.

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To book a test, people will need to visit www.expresstest.co.uk and select a date and time.

Customers will then be sent a QR code which they must bring with them to their appointment, along with their passport or employee ID.

Payment will be taken during the booking process. Opening hours are 8am to 8pm.