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PREVIOUSLY Changi Airport in Singapore announced that it would implement a biometric boarding system for airplane passengers departing from Singapore starting in 2024. With the biometric boarding system, prospective airplane passengers can pass through the security gate at the airport without showing documents in the form of a passport or boarding pass.
Instead, airplane passengers simply move their faces at several points that have been provided for security checks.
“Singapore will be one of the first countries in the world to introduce automatic and passport-free immigration permits,” said Singapore’s Minister of Communications and Information, Josephine Teo, recently.
Apart from Singapore, there are several countries in the world that have already implemented the same thing. Quoting from the Travel and Leisure page, there are at least 10 other countries that have implemented biometric boarding services. Here are the details.
Countries that serve biometric systems:
1. Japan
Two airports in Japan, namely Haneda International Airport and Narita International Airport, have installed “Face Pass”, a facial recognition system that allows passengers to board planes without a boarding pass.
Prospective airplane passengers who want to use “Face Pass” need to register their passport, include a photo and fill in flight data first. After the process is successful, prospective passengers can pass through the security gate at the airport using facial scanning technology.
2. India
Several airports in India have switched to digital services that can recognize airplane passengers from facial scanning technology called DigiYatra.
These include Indira Gandhi International Airport (Delhi), Kempegowda International Airport (Bengaluru), Lal Bahadur Shastri International Airport (Varanasi), Pune International Airport, and Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (Hyderabad).
Then there is Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport (Guwahati), Chaudhary Charan Singh International Airport (Lucknow), Vijayawada International Airport, and Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport (Kolkata).
Prospective passengers who want to use this service can download the DigiYartra application via smartphone. After that, users are asked to take a selfie, add their identification number and boarding pass details.
3. United Arab Emirates
Dubai International Airport and Abu Dhabi International Airport also have biometric systems in place. This system allows airplane passengers to board without having to show a passport or boarding pass.
At Dubai International Airport, this technology has been used by expatriates, Emiratis and visitors since 2019. The airport has 122 gates equipped with a biometric system. Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi International Airport has started the first phase of biometric services which have been implemented at certain immigration gates and departure gates.
4. Malaysia
Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Malaysia has implemented facial recognition technology to speed up the boarding process since early 2022.
Prospective airplane passengers who will use this technology must register first at Totem Registration at the departure airport. In the initial stage, prospective airplane passengers need to scan their boarding pass for passenger registration. After that, passengers only need to scan their faces to pass through the security gate.
5. Hong Kong
The use of face switching technology at Hong Kong International Airport has started since 2019. Prospective airplane passengers must create a digital token by matching the passenger’s biometric token with their passport and flight details. This facial recognition system is installed at security gates and electronic boarding gates at airports.
6. France
Two main airports in France, namely Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport and Orly Airport, are in the trial phase of face-changing technology for passengers who want to board planes. The airport will temporarily store passenger data in the form of flight details, passports and photos.
This facial recognition system is installed at various airport gates, allowing passengers to pass without needing to show a boarding pass. The trial phase of this technology was only carried out on passengers flying using Ari Caraibes and French Bee airlines.
7. Spain
In Spain, this facial scanning technology is starting to be tested at certain departure gates at Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat Airport. Prospective airplane passengers must register via the Aena application or via facial recognition spots at the airport.
After prospective passengers are registered, cameras at security and the departure gate will use a facial recognition system that allows prospective passengers to pass through the gate without showing a passport or boarding pass.
8. England
Airports in the UK that serve biometric boarding systems are Heathrow Airport and Manchester Airport. However, this system is only available for British Airways. Prospective British Airways passengers must register at the airport for facial recognition.
After the registration process is complete, passengers can pass through the inspection gate without having to use any physical documents.
9. Germany
Two airports in Germany, namely Bandra Frankfurt and Munich International Airport, serve a special biometric system for Lufthansa Airlines passengers. Prospective Lufthansa Airlines passengers must register on the Lufthansa application with a complete photo and passport.
This data will later be stored in the application with a security pin code to secure passenger data. Once the registration process is complete, Lufthansa Airlines passengers only need to scan their faces at the departure gate before boarding the plane.
10. United States
Most airlines in the United States implement biometric boarding systems. As is done by Delta Airlines and United Airlines.
However, certain airlines charge passengers a fee to access biometric facilities at the airport. Airplane passengers who want to use this biometric boarding system must register on the airline application.
The data required includes flight details, identity information and photos for facial recognition at the airport later. [kompas.com/photo special]
