Singapore’s Changi Airport is switching to biometric technology, which should speed up the security process, giving travelers more time to explore the airport. 

Courtesy of Jewel Changi Airport.

With the world’s tallest indoor waterfall, a terraced tropical garden with more than 900 trees and 60,000 shrubs, and a walking path dotted with life-size dinosaur sculptures, Singapore’s Changi Airport is consistently ranked the best in the world. And soon, it’ll also be one of the most high-tech.

Starting sometime in the first half of 2024, you won’t need to show your passport if you’re traveling through Singapore. All you’ll need to pass through security and immigration is your face—the airport is switching to biometric technology and facial recognition technology instead of having agents physically check travel documents to move travelers through the airport more quickly.

“Biometrics will be used to create a single token of authentication that will be employed at various automated touchpoints, from bag-drop to immigration and boarding,” the country’s communications minister, Josephine Teo, said in a speech to Singapore’s parliament on September 18. “This will reduce the need for passengers to repeatedly present their travel documents at these touchpoints, allowing for more seamless and convenient processing.”

In just August 2023, more than 5.15 million passengers transited through Changi, which is still shy of the nearly 6 million passengers the airport saw in the same month in 2019. As the tourism industry continues to recover from the effects of the pandemic, that number is expected to rise, especially after the completion of Changi’s Terminal 5 (slated for around the mid-2030s).

“Our immigration systems must be able to manage this high and growing volume of travelers efficiently and provide a positive clearance experience while ensuring our security,” Teo said.

Already, Changi uses the technology for automated lanes at immigration. And while you won’t need to flash your passport in the Singapore airport once the new tech goes into effect, you will need to bring it on your travels, as it will still be necessary when you land in another country and upon returning home from abroad. (And it’s a good idea to keep on hand in case customs officers need to double-check your documents.)

Singapore isn’t the only airport that is increasing its reliance on biometric technology and facial recognition. Those flying Emirates through Dubai (specifically those using the Terminal 3) can board their aircraft with just facial recognition by the end of the year.

Europe is working on a new tech-driven Entry/Exit System (EES) that will keep track of visitors as they cross borders. And in the United States, biometric face scanners are already in use at Global Entry kiosks, and some airlines (like United, American, Delta, and JetBlue) are testing facial recognition technology for check-in, bag drops, and boarding at select gates.

source : https://www.afar.com/magazine/singapores-changi-airport-will-soon-go-passport-free

UAE airports are implementing new technological innovations to streamline the passenger’s journey, cutting queues and getting you on your way in minutes, if not seconds.

• According to the CEO of Dubai Airports, operator of DXB and DWC, the company wants to eliminate physical check-ins
• Through the adoption of new tech like AI and biometrics, the digital transformation of UAE airports is being made possible
• Soon, passengers might not need their passports to travel anymore

From hours to 15 seconds: time’s up for long queues at the airport. Soon, you might not even need your passport to travel. 

This will be possible because the UAE is implementing new technology that will allow travelers to enjoy a seamless airport experience. Some of this tech has already been put in place. 

What kind of tech is going into these new digitized airports?

Physical check-in desks will be a thing of the past

As we approach the deadline for Smart Dubai 2021, Dubai continues to undergo digital transformation on all levels of business and infrastructure. 

Naturally, the operator of Dubai International Airport (DXB) and Dubai World Central (DWC), Dubai Airports, will want to follow suite with a similar transition at their airports. 

The company’s CEO, Paul Griffiths, told Aviation Business that Dubai Airports wants to phase out physical check-in desks.  

“What we want is to eliminate them altogether,” Griffiths said. “Soon, I don’t think you’ll need to check-in using any physical token of booking. Most of it will be done at the time of booking in the office or home. We just need to find a way of dealing with baggage and I think technology is moving towards that area too.” 

He explained that the airports they manage “don’t have the space to build a huge amount of new aviation infrastructure, to create additional capacity.” As such, they’ve decided to invest in processes and technology, to streamline the passenger journey. 

“That’s a combination of consolidation and elimination — putting processes together that are currently operated in discrete silos, such as check-in, immigration, security, and boarding,” he added. “All of those at the moment are discrete processes.”

What tech are we talking about here? 

While Griffiths did not go into details regarding the technologies that they seek to implement, we have a general idea of what to expect. 

Across the world, we are already seeing the large-scale digitization of airports. Last year in Uruguay, Carrasco International Airport introduced self-service biometric boarding for LATAM Airlines, allowing passengers to board the plane without having to show their passport or boarding pass at the gate.

In Turkey, the world’s largest, fully-digitized airport is being built – the Istanbul Grand Airport, which began limited operations in late 2018. 

Locally, UAE airports are already making the transition, investing in new tech. In March, Etihad announced that it has partnered with automation tech firm Elenium to bring Abu Dhabi International Airport a slew of new innovations. The partnership will implement voice-recognition technology at self-service kiosks, bag drop and the boarding gate facility.

This will be made possible by utilizing cloud technology, artificial intelligence (AI), computer vision and natural human interfacing. 

“Passengers check-in to their flight and register their biometric data on their mobile device before arriving at the airport,” a press release by Etihad said. This mirrors what Griffiths is aiming for in terms of DXB and DWC.

As for Dubai Airports, they have begun implementing similar new-generation technology, such as smart gates, which were rolled out in 2017. According to the Dubai Media Office (DMO), the number of passengers passing through smart gates at Dubai Airports in 2018 reached 10.7 million – 22.3% of the total number of passengers who travelled through the airports that year. These smart gates can only be used by UAE residents, however. 

source : https://www.ameinfo.com/industry/travel/airport-travel-digitization-passport-control-uae-airports

The wait time trackers were rolled out starting in late November with the government shutdown. Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images

The city’s major airports have rolled out real-time TSA and taxi wait time tracking that it says will help passengers make informed day-of travel decisions.

The tracking system has gone into effect at all terminals across Newark Liberty International, John F. Kennedy International, LaGuardia, and New York Stewart International with the exception of United Airline’s Terminal C at Newark Liberty International, where the airline hopes to launch the technology later this year.

The airports started rolling out the tracking systems in late November to help inform travelers of airport conditions during the government shutdown. The real-time information is viewable on the home pages of the JFK, EWR, LGA, and SWF websites as well as inside the terminals.

In addition to aiding passengers, the tracking will help the airport agencies funnel resources to areas where waits are rising, as well as develop strategies to reduce wait times going forward.

The tracking will help passengers make similarly informed decisions about ground transportation, and inform the airport which terminals are experiencing taxi shortages and where it should funnel taxis to.

“With this real-time data posted on each of the airport’s websites, wait times are now readily available to help reduce passenger stress and enable travelers to plan based on the wait times they will encounter,” Port Authority Executive Director Rick Cotton said in a statement. “At the same time, as we saw during the recent government shutdown, the information makes it easier for airport staff to monitor checkpoint wait times and call for additional resources to congested areas.”

source : https://ny.curbed.com/2019/2/5/18211892/nyc-airport-tsa-tracking-wait-times

This is Airport Traffic Monitor, it counts passengers entering and exiting the airport using “Pedestrian Planning” GE smart service.

Waiting In A Long Security Line?
Help The Process Be More Efficient!

Do you know this website ? http://ihatethewait.com/

Passengers will love it…

demonstrates the power of an app to help airport visitors navigate though the airport and receive important status updates on flight arrivals/departures, security queue and baggage wait times as well as car park booking and tagging, retail offers at airport stores and more.

The airport will use Anaplan’s forecasting capabilities to predict and create effective complex-demand plans on a daily, weekly, monthly, and annual basis.

The introduction of the Anaplan platform has allowed airports to access a single source of passenger information, as well as simulate future scenarios.

more to read:http://tinyurl.com/h9ycafb