Biden comment hints at boosting travel between US and Europe

A comment by President Joe Biden is encouraging airlines to hope that travel between the United States and Europe could be expanded in time for last-minute, late-summer vacation trips.

At a news conference with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Biden was asked about ending restrictions that bar most European visitors from entering the United States.

Biden said Thursday that a team that is advising him on the pandemic “brought that subject up. It’s in the process of (considering) how soon we can lift the ban ... and I will be able to answer that question to you within the next several days.”

An official with the U.S. Travel Association, a trade group for the broader tourism industry, praised Biden's comments.

“The science says we can safely reopen international travel now, particularly for countries that have made considerable progress toward vaccinating their citizens," said Tori Emerson Barnes, the travel group's executive vice president of policy, citing studies that concluded there is a low risk of transmitting the virus during flights. “Each day that outdated restrictions on travel exist wreaks economic damage on our nation."

Airlines for America, a trade group representing major U.S. carriers, said “the time for action is now" to reopen to international visitors. The group noted that the U.S. allows travel to and from Mexico, where less than one-third of the population is vaccinated, while severely restricting travel from Canada and the United Kingdom, two countries with relatively high vaccination rates.

The rise and prevalence of COVID-19 variants in Europe, especially the delta mutation that is also spreading throughout the U.S., has caused the Biden administration to tread slowly about increasing transatlantic travel.

Last month, Secretary of State Antony...