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Heathrow Airport bosses want the UK government to back its new testing regime to avoid passengers having to go into quarantine on their arrival in London.
UK laws currently mean that people arriving from high-risk countries have to self-isolate for 14 days.
But Europe's busiest airport has testing facilities in place that could take the place of the quarantine rules which have been damaging for the travel industry.
The new testing facility at Terminal 2 can test up to 13,000 passengers a day, and those behind the scheme say it could be ramped up to the "hundreds of thousands."
Another facility at Terminal 5 is expected to be up and running by the end of August, according to Scott Sunderman, managing director of medical and security assurance at travel assistance firm Collinson. It works with logistics provider Swissport and Heathrow Airport to operate the scheme.
The UK government is in talks with Heathrow where testing isn't mandatory.
"I think there's obviously concern about public health. You know the UK has been hit very badly by the virus and there's a natural conservatism to wanting to make sure that the community is safe," said Mr Sunderman. "However, many countries have now trialed this process, found it safe and have implemented it. There are 30-odd countries that are now doing this in the world."
Heathrow bosses believe more testing would encourage travelers. CGT
Other travel hubs like Paris' Charles de Gaulle and Dubai International have similar facilities in place and supporters say it can instil confidence in passengers that travelling is safe.
The global aviation industry has been ravaged by the pandemic and major airlines are also backing the move, says Sunderman.
"We've had very strong support from airlines around the world, obviously the big UK airlines as well as Middle Eastern airlines like Emirates, for example, who rely heavily on the routes into London," he said.
Who would pay for it?
The tests cost £150 ($197) and at the moment, passengers have to foot the bill but Heathrow thinks that more testing would help boost the UK's economy.
"Testing will not only avoid the 'quarantine roulette' that so many passengers faced in Spain and France, it will also open up flights to key trading partners such as the U.S., Canada and Singapore," said Heathrow CEO John Holland-Kaye.
"The government's own research shows that a double test has a high level of accuracy in screening for COVID. This facility is an oven-ready opportunity to see how Britain can safely reopen for business, as other countries are doing."
Tourism contributed almost $192 billion to the UK's GDP in 2018, according to official figures from the Office for National Statistics. Getting visitors and business travelers back will be crucial for its economic recovery.
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