Heathrow trials thermal imaging temperature checks for passengers arriving in Britain

Heathrow will this week launch airport temperature checks in a move it hopes will allow Britons to head abroad safely without going into quarantine on their return.

In a trial set to start as soon as Thursday, passengers arriving at the airport’s Terminal 2 will be automatically screened for raised temperatures by thermal imaging cameras mounted on tripods.

Passengers will see the cameras as they pass through the immigration hall, with a sign telling them when they are entering an area being monitored.

They will not have to stop to have their temperature checked – instead, screening will take just seconds using infrared sensors as passengers move through the area.

The cameras can read temperatures at a distance of 8ft. If a high temperature or suspected fever is detected, checking systems will produce a warning signal.

Heathrow bosses told The Mail on Sunday they are in talks with Border Force, the Department for Transport and Public Health England on what action should be taken if a passenger with a fever is identified.

Options include asking that person to go into quarantine.

If the trial proves successful, Heathrow could roll out its temperature screening cameras in its departures, connections and staff search areas. 

It is also trialling contact-free security screening equipment and UV lighting to sanitise security trays. 

The new scheme is part of the Government’s efforts to get Britons flying safely again. 

If international health standards for travel can be agreed, Heathrow believes there would be no need for social distancing in airports or on planes. 

It also hopes health checks would negate the need for Government proposals to ask passengers who arrive in the UK to quarantine for 14 days.

Last week, Ministers sparked a furious backlash from airlines, airports, travel firms and holidaymakers by suggesting that most people arriving in the UK would have to self-isolate for two weeks. 

The travel industry warned that the plans, which apply to Britons returning from holiday as well as visitors from abroad, will put off most families from leaving the UK for summer breaks this year – even if other countries open their airports to international arrivals.

Airlines told The Mail on Sunday they felt they were not properly consulted on the 14-day quarantine plan. They also raised doubts about its scientific basis and criticised a lack of detail about how the scheme would be implemented and later phased out.

A senior airline source said: ‘If the Government said quarantining people is going to stop further spread of the virus, everyone would understand. But there is no logic [to the plan] and a complete lack of clarity.’ 

As part of ongoing talks with the industry, Transport Secretary Grant Shapps and Home Office Minister Kevin Foster last week held a series of calls with aviation bosses to fine-tune the rules.

Ministers are considering introducing a list of passengers who would be exempt from the requirement to self-isolate for 14 days on arrival in the UK, including businessmen, freight drivers and doctors.

Privately, industry insiders fear the Government will push ahead despite the backlash. However, they hope to ensure rules are in place for as short a time as possible.

One industry leader at last week’s talks said: ‘We are opposed to the quarantine but we are realistic enough to know that the Prime Minister announced it to 28 million people on TV. It will be tough to row back from that.’

Tim Alderslade, chief executive of Airlines UK, added: ‘We support the use of exemptions that allow the safe resumption of travel as soon as possible. But it isn’t clear why business or any exempted category of traveller is safer than others if everyone is subject to the same health measure at and before departure.’

Airlines already carry out temperature checks at departure gates on passengers who are going to countries that require them. Many Asian airports use technology similar to the one being tested at Heathrow.