SITA report: aviation industry ramping up use of biometrics
Airports and the airline industry are increasingly leveraging biometrics to streamline operations and strengthen security, aviation tech firm SITA says.
Findings from the SITA 2018 Air Transport IT Insights study show biometric tech is being integrated into self-service operations at airports and its use is slated to grow significantly in the coming years.
SITA says 77% of airports and 71% of airlines are planning upgrades or research and development in biometric ID management over the next three years.
"Secure and seamless travel is a must for the air transport industry. It is encouraging to see that both airlines and airports are investing in biometric technology to deliver a secure, paperless way to identify passengers across multiple steps of the journey," said Barbara Dalibard, CEO of SITA.
The study shines a light on various government compliancy issues facing airports and airlines, and SITA urges a more collaborative approach to meet the challenges.
"As the research shows, integration causes challenges and the variety of legislative demands can be daunting for airlines and airports. To deliver a seamless passenger experience, we must all collaborate – airlines, airports, governments and industry suppliers," Dalibard added.
"It is clear that the will of the industry is to change the way we travel by improving efficiency and making the passenger journey as secure and seamless as possible."
Artificial intelligence is seeing a surge in interest from airlines to enhance the customer journey with 84% of airlines planning to have AI development programs in place by 2021.
This is up from 52% in last year’s survey.
Airlines see the potential of using AI as customer facing virtual agents and chatbots.
The SITA study also sees big potential for blockchain usage in passenger identity management to help speed up passenger flows at airports.
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