Sergio Colella (SITA) : La reconnaissance faciale doit réduire les files d'attente à l'aéroport

Hello, thank you.

That's absolutely the idea, and that's what we've deployed at Frankfurt Airport, which is in the top five of the largest airports in Europe and in the world. The idea is that when you enter the airport, you probably have luggage and a coat in your hands, and you no longer need to take out your boarding pass or your ID. You are recognized biometrically, through artificial intelligence, and so the process becomes smoother, there are fewer bottlenecks, and the passenger experience is better.

Absolutely. There are two possibilities. Either you register with your mobile phone before arriving at the airport, or even at a kiosk in the airport, and you are recognized. All the steps — security, baggage drop-off, check-in, and boarding — you no longer need to take out your ID or your boarding pass. Your face becomes your boarding pass. The other possibility, if you wish, is for this information to be stored by the airline so that every time you fly, you are recognized.

Yes, absolutely. There are several elements. There's border control, and there's the airport experience — these are two different things. Here we're addressing the airport experience: when you drop off your bags, you're recognized and you don't need to take out your boarding pass or ID. This is not for customs — it's not for going through immigration. At boarding, the same applies: you don't have to put down your belongings, take out your boarding pass or passport for verification. You simply stand in front of a screen for a moment, you're recognized, and you pass through. This allows you to go faster, and the security level of these technologies is very high. Beyond recognition, there's another security element: data protection. We are extremely attentive and serious about this. We are protected by very important European regulations — the GDPR, the General Data Protection Regulation — and we are fully compliant. Moreover, this is based on consent.

As with any new technology, there's a gradual adoption. There are always what we call early adopters — people who jump on it sooner, frequent flyers. But this experience is open to all airlines and therefore potentially all passengers. We've measured a satisfaction rate of around 75% when using this technology. It's almost magical: you stand in front of a screen, in 2 to 3 seconds you're recognized and you pass through. It eliminates bottlenecks and also allows better care for people with mobility difficulties in the airport, freeing up time so everyone can have a smoother experience. We have congested airports, we have airports in Europe that are very difficult to physically expand, so digital is the solution.

That's a very good point. The aviation industry's number one priority is security, so when there's a threat, whether real or false, all necessary verifications must be carried out despite the costs and especially despite the disruption it creates. But can we do better with digital? Yes. We can get a faster view of a situation through digital vision in airports, digital tools to help arrive at a diagnosis. But the security level must remain high. I hope this situation is a peak that won't repeat over time.

You have an excellent memory. It's much better now — in 2022 we returned to pre-crisis levels. Baggage remains one of the difficult points of travel: the two things passengers fear are delays or disruptions, and lost baggage. So we've returned to pre-COVID levels and we continue to work on this. What's very important is that technology allows us to improve every element of the passenger experience — that's what's fundamental.