The facility, built on an area measuring approximately 7,000 square metres, provided by Aeroporti di Roma, by converting a portion of the Long Stay car park within 72 hours, will be managed by the Lazio Region Health Authorities and manned by medical and paramedical staff of the Italian Red Cross. As in the case of the health centre that has been operating since 16 August 2020 at Terminal 3 Arrivals, this facility has also been built in record time, thanks to the effective partnership between the Lazio Region, USMAF Istituto Spallanzani, the Italian Red Cross and AdR.

The facility, which is the largest in Lazio, will have six health checkpoints for sampling and will be able to accommodate up to 130 vehicles; it will also be equipped with toilets and a food service will be available. The drive-in will remain open seven days a week, with extensive opening times. The new area dedicated to rapid tests, accessible to anyone, can be easily accessed from the Rome-Fiumicino motorway, partly thanks to dedicated road signs. Aeroporti di Roma also informs its passengers, whether arriving at or departing from Fiumicino airport, intending use the service that a shuttle service is available from and to the airport: the connection will be enhanced during evening hours to facilitate the use of the drive-in also for passengers arriving from countries currently under control who have been unable to undergo the test in the facility operating at Terminal 3 Arrivals.                  

“We work for the safety of Rome and the whole country in the fight against the spread of COVID-19. An extraordinary job by our health professionals and by the Italian Red Cross”, declared the President of the Lazio Region, Nicola Zingaretti.

“The Region is committed to the front line in the fight against the spread of the virus and is implementing a significant strengthening of the control capacity that is already active in the Region. The more safety that is guaranteed, the more the economy restarts. Fiumicino airport is an important driver for the country’s economy”, states Alessio D’Amato, Health Councillor for the Lazio Region.

“We believe it is our duty, now just as at the start of the health crisis, to guarantee maximum support alongside the Region, the Government and our community. The rapid construction of a huge drive-in centre at the airport not only testifies to the awareness of and commitment to implementing everything possible to handle the Covid-19 crisis with determination but, in perspective, also looks at the possibility of offering all our passengers an additional opportunity to simply and rapidly manage infection control activities”, says Marco Troncone, CEO of Aeroporti di Roma.