Through a partnership between MIA, Lufthansa, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and global air transport IT provider SITA, a simple photograph taken at Lufthansa’s boarding gate is used to confirm passengers’ identities and their authorisation to travel.
Passengers departing from Miami International Airport (MIA) to Munich on Lufthansa flight 461 can now board with the click of a camera instead of a boarding pass and passport.
Through a partnership between MIA, Lufthansa, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and global air transport IT provider SITA, a simple photograph taken at Lufthansa’s boarding gate is used to confirm passengers’ identities and their authorisation to travel.
The facial recognition verification process takes less than two seconds with a 99% matching rate, according to CBP. MIA expects to launch biometric boarding with additional airlines this year.
CBP Miami Port Director Christopher Maston said the implementation of a biometric entry-exit system would “transform travel for all flyers”.
The launch of biometric exit at MIA follows the airport’s February 2018 opening of America’s first all-biometric entry facility at Concourse E, which screens all international arrivals via facial recognition. The facility has decreased processing times by as much as 80%.
SITA Smart Path is based on industry-standard common-use gates so it can be used by any other airline at MIA.