IATA - Airlines
30 October 2024
Fully digital air travel is one step closer to reality following the latest proof of concept (PoC).
Two passengers used a variety of digital wallets and travel credentials—including digital passports, company ID, and frequent flyer information—on a round-trip between Hong Kong and Tokyo. This allowed the travelers to obtain personalized offers, book a flight, get a visa, and negotiate airport processes within a live environment.
All travel credentials were stored in a digital wallet on a smartphone and shared at such touchpoints as bag drop, security, immigration, and boarding. This enabled several key elements of the digital travel experience to be validated.
Verifiable credentials (VC) for biometrics and the boarding pass were successfully tested for the first time as was a Visa VC to demonstrate paperless document verification. Moreover, involving multiple VC issuers, verifiers, and wallets validated the flexibility of the required technology across travel stages and jurisdictions. For example, during the PoC, the VCs integrated smoothly with live biometric systems at both Hong Kong and Tokyo’s Narita airports.
Read on: Turning contactless travel from potential to reality | Airlines
