Global airline coalition Star Alliance has rolled out its biometric facial recognition system for participating Austrian, Swiss and Lufthansa passengers at Hamburg Airport, Germany.
To use the system, members of the Miles & More loyalty program need to register for Star Alliance Biometrics at least 24 hours before their flight. To do so, they need a valid passport and the latest version of the Lufthansa or Miles & More app. As soon as they have registered, they can pass through the central security checkpoint and the boarding gates A17 and C16 at Hamburg Airport without touching any of the kiosks.
At the entry point, the passenger’s face is automatically captured and compared with the stored image. Travelers are still able to wear face masks while passing through the system.
The Star Alliance Biometrics platform was previously launched at Frankfurt, Munich and Vienna hubs in November 2020. The identification solution used in Star Alliance Biometrics is powered by NEC I: Delight facial recognition technology from Japan’s NEC Corporation. Personal data, such as photos and other identifiers, are encrypted and stored securely within the platform.
Mirjam Fröhlich, head of passenger and baggage management at Hamburg Airport, said, “We are delighted that Lufthansa, Austrian and Swiss are now also offering Star Alliance facial recognition at Hamburg Airport. This is a plus in convenience for participating passengers entering the security checkpoint and at selected gates. The new technology offers additional time savings and makes the checking process at central points of the airport even smoother, which is just what our passengers want.”
Falk Durm, head of ground and airport experience, Lufthansa Group, said, “In the Lufthansa Group, biometric offers will increasingly provide for simplified and more efficient contactless processes at the airports and thus significantly improve the travel experience of our passengers. I am pleased that we can now also offer our guests Star Alliance Biometrics in Hamburg after the successful start in Frankfurt, Munich and Vienna.”
Christian Draeger, vice president, customer experience, Star Alliance, added, “We are delighted to expand our state-of-the-art Star Alliance biometrics to Hamburg Airport. We welcome more passengers to the future of air travel that is inspired by contactless and seamless experiences. We are committed to the cause and are progressively widening our biometrics footprint. We hope to see more member airlines and partner airports adopt the technology in the times to come.”
