Discount carrier Spirit Airlines announced today that it is introducing biometric check-ins in its ticket hall at Chicago O'Hare Airport to streamline the check-in process and reduce face-to-face interactions between its employees and passengers during the pandemic.
The new process is simple, although at first it still involves a customer service agent, who will check the flyer ID before approaching the new baggage check-in / drop-off units. If passengers opt for the biometric procedure - and this remains optional - they scan their ID and the system will compare the photo with a face scan captured by the car.
Over time, Spirits hopes to eliminate an agent's first ID check step, but is awaiting TSA approval to do so.
If everything works according to plan, the passenger can then drop off their luggage and go their merry way (until they reach the TSA checkpoint, but that's not the airline's fault).
"We began looking for ways to improve the check-in experience in 2019 as part of our commitment to investing in the guest," explained Ted Christie, president and CEO of Spirit, in today's announcement. "We knew from the start that automation and biometric photo matching would make the check-in process easier. Now, in 2020, we're realizing those same elements are just as valuable when it comes to helping people to feel comfortable in flight. Limiting unnecessary contact points and face-to-face interactions will change the way airports operate. "
Before the pandemic, this would have seemed like an obvious effort to save money by reducing the number of employees required to manage check-in counters (with self-service baggage already becoming standard procedure). Now it seems like the right move, even if the number of travelers remains at an all-time low.
Currently, 600 passengers use Spirit's luggage storage at O'Hare. In its tests, the airline found that the new process reduces the average processing time by 70 seconds.
Spirit points out that none of the data is passed on to the government and that it does not leave Spirit's possession. Biometrics and especially facial recognition have long been a subject of controversy at airports, at least in the United States, with national security testing biometric scans before boarding international flights, for example, and the TSA is now testing checkpoints. self-service to pass passengers through its security lines. And while many flyers now feel comfortable using CLEAR to get past security with just fingerprints or a facial scan, there's still a large chunk of the flying audience that will feel a little uncomfortable with this, too. during a pandemic and despite the airline arguing that it does not share data with the government.