person using biometric self-boarding airport gate

Onboarding Exceptional Experiences: How Biometric Self-Boarding Gates Are Transforming Air Travel

The passenger journey is taking off in a new direction, fueled by best-in-class biometric identification and verification technology. Facial recognition paired with self-boarding gates is evolving travel to a state of paperless, hassle-free passage and is experiencing significant growth.

The 2023 SITA Air Transport IT Insights report indicates that 83% of airlines have implemented or plan to implement biometrics at boarding by 2026. And, in line with the IT spending, 75% of surveyed passengers want to use biometric data instead of passports or boarding passes, according to the 2023 Global Passenger Survey by IATA.  

Let’s explore how biometric self-boarding gates are driving efficiency and contributing to a more simplified, secure and satisfying travel experience.

Alleviating Boarding Turmoil with Facial Recognition

The recently announced collaboration between HID and ASSA ABLOY provides a lofty lift to revolutionize the air travel industry: the biometric self-boarding gate. 

Single Gate Double Gate

This innovation consists of HID’s U.ARE.U Camera Identification System — featuring remarkable facial recognition technology — and the sleek ASSA ABLOY Speed Gate. It’s a progressive pairing that empowers passengers to verify their identity and self-board with simply one look, thereby eliminating the need for manual document checks. This significantly reduces wait times, minimizes human errors, enhances security and decreases the number of attendants required at the boarding area.

Elite facial recognition technology like the HID U.ARE.U Camera Identification System offers fast, accurate on-device matching and passive liveness detection to reduce latency and prevent spoofing. This is a critical requirement in high-traffic environments, such as airports, with many ID checkpoints and limited attendants. The camera, lauded for its matching excellence even in challenging lighting conditions, excels within airport settings where backgrounds are busy and indisputable ID verification is required.

With its ultra-modular design, the ASSA ABLOY speed gate is simple to install and available in a range of colors and dimensions to complement any terminal’s aesthetics. The speed gates also have various security measures, such an anti-tailgating, piggy-backing and wrong-way passage, and can handle high traffic volumes in public areas with limited attendance, which is ideal for airport use cases. 

How Does Biometric Self-Boarding Work?

The biometric self-boarding process is easy and convenient — accomplished with only two simple steps.

1. Check-In: Travelers start with secure mobile or on-site check-in by authenticating their ID documents and matching a selfie with their ID photo to create travel credentials. 

travel credential on phone

2. Boarding: When ready to board, passengers simply look at the camera for a face scan to verify their identity. The process is quick and efficient, taking only a few seconds to complete.

cartoon of people boarding at airport

The introduction of the biometric self-boarding gate is a prime example of how facial recognition technology can improve the travel experience while enhancing security and operational efficiency. Long lines, human errors and the constant struggle to keep track of paper documents are quickly becoming frustrations of the past.

The Reimagined Travel Journey

 As facial recognition continues to gain traction, it is being incorporated into more use cases throughout airport terminals and border crossings. Imagine secure, seamless passenger ID verification at immigration, security checkpoints, VIP lounge access, duty-free shopping and beyond. 

HID and ASSA ABLOY will showcase the new biometric self-boarding gate at the Passenger Terminal Expo (PTE), April 16-18 in Frankfurt, Germany, Booth A22. You can also get a glimpse into the reimagined travel journey powered by HID and ASSA ABLOY. 

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