Amsterdam Schiphol Trials Facial Recognition For Boarding

February 19, 2019

Passengers on Cathay Pacific flights departing Amsterdam’s Schiphol Airport can now take part in a facial recognition trial designed to simplify the journey from check-in to boarding gate.

The trial is the first part of rolling out facial recognition technology throughout Schiphol, the airport said.

The process starts after check-in when an airport staff member takes the passenger to a registration kiosk where their passport, boarding pass and face are scanned.

Once through security and passport control the passenger’s face is scanned again at the gate and compared with the scan taken when registering. If the scans match, the passenger can board.

“For passengers, the journey from arrival at the airport to boarding will become easier and more efficient,” Schiphol's head of security Wilma van Dijk said.

At present, passengers still need to show their passport, boarding pass or both at various checkpoints but in future, they will be able to pass through the checks more smoothly with the facial recognition technology. “You can leave your passport and boarding pass tucked away in your bag,” van Dijk said.

“As Cathay Pacific is always looking for ways to improve our customers’ experience at every stage of their journey with us, the experience at the airport forms an important and integral part of that journey,” Cathay’s Will Kerr-Muir said.

“For this reason, we are pleased to take part in this innovative trial, so we can prepare ourselves and our passengers for the travelling method of the future.”

The trial will be expanded to include passport control during the next year, Schiphol said.