Ecuador’s Quito Airport earns Airport Health Accreditation

Quito International Airport continues to lead the way in Latin America by becoming one of the first airports in the region to be accredited under ACI’s Airport Health Accreditation (AHA) programme.

The ACI Airport Health Accreditation is based on the recommendations of ICAO to establish common sanitary measures and is aligned with the best practices of ACI, as well as with the safety protocol of aviation developed by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).

According to ACI, the objective of this accreditation is to demonstrate to passengers, airport employees, strategic partners and authorities the actions that the certified airport has taken to prioritise health and safety.

“Quiport has worked diligently in the development of protocols and sanitary prevention measures for the Quito International Airport, and when we learned about the ACI accreditation programme, we immediately applied,” notes Quiport’s president and CEO, Andrew O’Brian.

“We believe that it is essential to enact sanitary measures common to the industry to guarantee the safety of our passengers, airport personnel and the society as a whole.”

Accreditation is voluntary. The first step is for the airport operator to submit a detailed questionnaire that covers all aspects of the sanitary measures applied at the airport, collecting supporting material as evidence of the measures taken, such as operating procedures, forms, photographs and videos.

ACI then evaluates all the information provided and if it meets the parameters of the programme, the airport obtains the accreditation, which will be valid for one year.

During this period, airports are required to perform periodic self-assessments and quality controls, leading to a cycle of continuous improvement as situations change and requirements evolve.

ACI World director general, Luis Felipe de Oliveira, comments: “Quito International Airport has shown that it is providing a safe airport experience for all travellers in line with the recommended health measures established in the ACI Aviation Business Restart and Recovery guidelines, as well as ICAO Council Aviation Recovery Task Force Recommendations, along with industry best practices.”

The airport believes that by obtaining the Airport Health Accreditation it is sending a clear message to the travelling public that it is open for operations and committed to permanently evaluating its processes and procedures to ensure the safety of both passengers and staff.

Aspects evaluated in the programme include cleaning and disinfection, physical distancing (when feasible and practical), protection of airport personnel, physical distribution, communication with passengers, and passenger facilities.

Quiport notes that all passenger areas and processes are considered, including access ways to the terminal, check-in areas, security control, boarding gates, lounges, retail stores, F&B outlets, boarding bridges, escalators and elevators, immigration control areas and facilities (in collaboration with authorities), baggage drop-off area and departure from the arrivals area.