International passengers travelling with Singapore Airlines have begun using, on a trial basis, new biometric technology delivered by Amadeus.
The project builds on the use of a cloud-based passenger handling platform which means Perth Airport can rapidly scale services up and down to match peaks and troughs in demand.
The trial will see volunteer passengers check-in at one of the biometric-enabled kiosks and with their consent create a biometric token which verifies the booking details, facial image and their passport.
At the auto bag drop, the passenger is biometrically identified and validated, removing the need for them to present a boarding pass.
When it is time to board the aircraft, the passenger approaches the boarding gate, the biometric camera will automatically identify them using their biometric token and validate against the respective airline’s departure control system (DCS). On successful validation, the boarding gate opens, the passenger is marked as ‘boarded’ in the airline’s DCS and can proceed to board the aircraft.
The biometric token is protected and stored on a secure server for a very limited period and deleted after the passenger boards the flight or 24 hours after creation of the token.
Perth Airport CEO Kevin Brown said the trial is part of a move towards greater use of touchless technology. He added: “The passenger experience is paramount, and this technology will allow us to serve more passengers to a higher standard, supporting the growth of our airport.”
Sarah Samuel, SVP Airport & Airline Operations, APAC, Amadeus, added: “Automating document checks with biometrics is the biggest near-term opportunity for airports and airlines seeking to simplify how passengers move through the airport. Amadeus takes an end-to-end approach to biometrics covering the passenger’s entire airport journey, with technology that can be deployed once and easily adopted by any airline.”
Image: Perth Airport
