Incheon Airport rolls out facial recognition system for departing travelers

Incheon International Airport on Friday rolled out a service that allows travelers to depart simply by scanning their faces, without the need to present passports or boarding passes.

A traveler uses the Smartpass system, which facilitates departure procedures by using facial recognition, at Incheon International Airport on Friday. The system was rolled out at all departure areas and 16 boarding gates at the airport on Friday. [YONHAP]

Incheon International Airport on Friday rolled out a service that allows travelers to depart simply by scanning their faces, without the need to present passports or boarding passes.

The Smartpass service became accessible at all departure areas and 16 boarding gates within Incheon Airport from Friday, the Ministry of Land, Transport and Infrastructure and the Incheon International Airport Corporation jointly announced Friday. The system is the first of its kind to be implemented in Korean airports.

To utilize the system, travelers need to register their facial information on the ICN Smartpass mobile app or via the airport's self-check-in kiosks at least 30 minutes before their scheduled departure. The registered facial recognition information remains valid for five years from the date of registration.

However, the physical passport and boarding pass are still mandatory for the immigration checks conducted by the Ministry of Justice.

The Smartpass service is available at all six gates within the airport's departure areas. However, when it comes to boarding gates, the service is currently only available at the 16 gates belonging to participating airlines including Korean Air Lines, Asiana Airlines, Jeju Air, Jin Air, T'way Air, and Delta Air Lines.

The transport ministry and the airport corporation plan to expand the Smartpass service to other airlines and boarding gates by April 2025.

Aside from Incheon International Airport, 14 domestic airports have implemented the "One ID" boarding service, which uses palm vein authentication to verify travelers' identities, since 2022.

"We hope the introduction of the Smartpass system during the busy summer season will be instrumental in easing airport congestion," Incheon International Airport Corporation CEO Lee Hak-jae said. "We will continually adopt advanced technology to enhance passenger convenience."

BY SEO JI-EUN [seo.jieun1@joongang.co.kr]