WHY IT RATES: Award-winning airline becomes the first in the U.S. to launch facial recognition boarding at Los Angeles International Airport. – Mackenzie Cullen, Editorial Associate
Norwegian Air, the World’s Best Low-Cost Long-Haul Airline, has become the first low-cost, long-haul carrier to introduce fast and secure next generation facial boarding technology at Los Angeles Airport (LAX), partnering with Vision-Box to offer a world-class passenger experience.
On July 11, the first Norwegian flight using facial recognition for boarding took off from Los Angeles to Barcelona. Already more than 500,000 international passengers have been recognized with their face to board paperless at LAX. A simple gaze at a camera opens the eGate to board the airplane.
“Norwegian thrives on innovation and sustainability. We’ve been named the ‘most fuel-efficient’ airline twice by the International Council on Clean Transportation and reducing our carbon footprint and sustainability matter to us. Adopting paperless boarding with biometric technology is the right step for our environment, and will create a seamless passenger experience, which will also attract more eco-conscious consumers to our airline,” said Bjørn Erik Barman-Jenssen, Managing Director Support Services at Norwegian Air.
Norwegian Air was the tenth airline to successfully go live with the contactless biometric self-boarding solution at LAX, joining Air France, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, KLM, Korean Air, Lufthansa, Qantas, and Singapore Airlines.
“We are very pleased to have Norwegian Air and its passengers benefit from Vision-Box biometric boarding platform at LAX, enjoying a faster and safer travel experience. This is yet another milestone that testifies to how biometrics is gaining traction to become the new normal,” said Miguel Leitmann, Global CEO and Founder of Vision-Box.
Los Angeles World Airports continues its transformation program, developing and embracing cutting edge technologies. LAX has recently been awarded the “Most Innovative Airport (large hub)” by the American Association of Airport Executives (AAAE).
The biometric self-boarding solution has been running since 2017 in the scope of the United States Biometric Exit trial program and following a partnership between Vision-Box, Los Angeles World Airports Authority (LAWA) and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
How the biometric boarding platform works
The passenger approaches a self-boarding eGate. A biometric-enabled camera ergonomically integrated in the eGate captures the passenger’s facial image. The image is securely sent to the CBP TVS (Traveler Verification Service), which conducts a matching process with the stored digital facial token, captured at the initial immigration process or from the U.S. passport. Within seconds the system reconciles the passenger identity and his eligibility to enter the flight. The positive match of both verifications triggers to open the eGate doors and the passenger can board the airplane.
More security and efficiency
The solution is based on Vision-Box Traveler flow orchestration platform, enabling a quick and secure data exchange for a fast and seamless process. It provides unprecedented security by confirming to the highest degree of certainty the identity of boarding passengers and the authenticity of their documents utilizing Department of Homeland Security CBP Traveler Verification Service. The self-boarding eGates were designed to offer an ergonomic passage, a friendly experience, and high speed in passenger throughout. Also offering a self-service method to change seats. As one result, airline operations is improved by automated reliable boarding and also secures an on-time departure.
For more information visit www.norwegian.com/us, www.vision-box.com, and www.flylax.com.
SOURCE: Norwegian Air press release.
