Collins Launches SelfPass Biometric Solution at Bristol and Dublin Airports
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During the 2019 Passenger Terminal Expo, Collins Aerospace announced the launch of SelfPass, a new product that enables single-token identity management from the curb to the gate.
Bristol Airport in the UK and Ireland’s Dublin Airport are testing Collins Aerospace’s newly launched SelfPass biometric facial identification solution, which does away with the need for passengers to present their passport and/or boarding pass throughout their journey.
The solution is enabled by adding cameras equipped with SelfPass software at major airport touchpoints such as check-in, bag drop, airline lounges, security and boarding gates, all of which can all be accessed using facial recognition technology that matches current images with passengers’ passport information.
Christopher Forrest, VP Global Airport Systems, Collins Aerospace, said that the system was developed over the last 12 months to accommodate the growing number of passengers at airports, without introducing costly new infrastructure and taking up valuable real estate. The company believes it is one of the first to create such a service, which can span multiple journeys and multiple countries.
Those with a Samsung device can complete the full biometric enrollment offsite through an airline or airport’s app or website, but others will first be required to input biographical information and then complete the biometric element of the enrollment on arrival at the airport. After completing the initial enrollment process, passengers will be able to use the same information on future journeys.
In terms of data privacy, the service requires passengers to opt-in, and they can un-enroll again at any time. Tony Chapman, director of Global Product Management and Strategy, Information Management Services for Collins Aerospace explains,”The service we’re using is a global cloud-based service and the enrollment is stored in the region in which your nationality says your enrollment can be stored. So, if you’re a US citizen, it’s stored in a US data center […] and the enrollment is stored under the conditions that the local government authorizes.”
“It takes less than one second to capture and process a passenger’s facial image and eliminates the need to repeatedly present travel documents.” – Christopher Forrest, Collins Aerospace
“Dublin and Bristol Airports are changing the way passengers travel and making the process easier and more efficient. For example, it takes less than one second to capture and process a passenger’s facial image and eliminates the need to repeatedly present travel documents,” said Forrest. “We see this as another leap forward for our biometric technology to play a key role in making the connected aviation ecosystem a reality.”
“We are delighted with the progress of the trial so far and look forward to extending the offering to a wider audience, including those traveling to the US, in the coming months,” said Frances O’Brien, VP of PMO for daa.
Collins Aerospace has also launched a subset of the SelfPass solution in cooperation with US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to streamline the boarding process for JetBlue passengers traveling from Terminal 5 at John F. Kennedy Airport. In this version, the US CBP stores the data as part of its wider biometric Entry/Exit system, so it’s not using the full SelfPass cloud-based solution. Collins Aerospace confirmed that so far, the system is operating with approximately 97% reliability.