Can Pre-Flight Testing Help Restore International Travel?

[RTM Boy]

I'm afraid I don't see how pre-flight testing is going to help.

The IATA claims contradict reality as it is at the moment and for the foreseeable future.

1. The pre-flight quickie Lamp test identifies just 60% of infections, so er 40% are missed (aka Swiss cheese)
2. The more reliable, but still less-than-perfect PCR test takes days and even then is only about 80% reliable, making it impractical for all sorts of reasons.
3. Is each member of the crew going to be tested before each flight also? If not, more Swiss cheese holes.
4. The charge for the Lamp test is £80 pp. So, assuming tested both ways, a family of 4 is facing a round-trip bill of £640 just for tests. Given the industry evidence of passenger duty price elasticity, this makes it a non-starter for holiday trips and most likely all but really essential business trips.
5. And all this at a time when restrictions are tightening over the winter as the second wave takes hold, making more travellers more cautious anyway.

So the net impact will be what exactly? Not much upside that I can see, I'm sorry to say.