Security & Digital Transformation: Key Takeaways from FTE Global

Mozelle Cox, Liam Connolly, Alexis Tuttle, Lindsey Richardson & Lusine Sargsyan

Earlier this month, Dignari attended the Future Travel Experience Global 2022 (FTE Global) conference, providing an opportunity to engage with some of the world’s leading experts in aviation innovation and security, digital transformation, and identity management. This event brought together subject matter experts across the industry to collaborate and champion new ideas, technology solutions, and innovation efforts that improve the future of the end-to-end passenger experience and explore new opportunities to enhance our nation’s security and prosperity. 

FTE Global is an independent global forum that brings airlines, airports, government agencies, technology vendors, and key travel industry stakeholders together to reinvent the passenger experience. The conference offered multiple educational tracks that ultimately focused on this year’s theme of “Future-Proofing Air Transport” and hosted upwards of 75+ exhibitors and 1,000+ senior executives from across the world. 

Held in Las Vegas on Sept 6-9, FTE Global featured some of the most established players in the sector, including NEC, Amazon One, Collins Aerospace, Amadeus, Copenhagen Optimization, IDEMIA, Lufthansa Systems, and Vision-Box. The event also featured key government partners, such as the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).  

AVIATION INNOVATION & DIGITAL IDENTITY

Throughout FTE Global, the sessions focused on fascinating insights into how the airlines, airports, and governing authorities are advancing bold visions for innovation to better adjust to the changing times and modern customer expectations. Some key examples include bringing seamless digital-led experiences, touchless travel, baggage innovation, and progressive approaches to airport design and sustainability to travelers around the globe. These discussions explored new business models and ways to collaborate more effectively with stakeholders while achieving future-proof designs, enhancing commercial success, identifying emerging technology, and reducing costs and emissions to better serve passengers' experience. 

In addition to focusing on transformative approaches to industry collaboration, airport senior leaders and authorities highlighted the importance of reimagining new ways airports are designed, managed, and potentialized. Some leaders reviewed their plans and/or recent upgrades to their respective locations, such as Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT), Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS), and Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport (DFW).  

Among these highlights were discussions exploring how airlines and authorities can leverage data, digital platforms, and evolved innovation tactics and technologies to create new business models and thrive in a post-global pandemic world. Multiple panels focused on how industry leaders advance digital identity to deliver next-level customer experiences and efficiencies for stakeholders while finding an appropriate balance between personal touch and automation. 

TSA, CBP, and Delta Air Lines led an in-depth technical session on the best approaches and current status for efforts to expand contactless biometrics from curb-to-gate. One key takeaway from this session was that CBP biometric capabilities report an over 98% successful biometric match rate and accurately identify over 1,500 imposters. All panel members reiterated their commitment to prioritizing passenger privacy and transparency on all facial recognition policies. Passengers can expect to see biometric bag drop and boarding solutions being tested that will be managed by the airline, operating under TSA’s regulatory authority, and may leverage CBP biometric capabilities.

Additionally, TSA provided an engaging tour of the reimagined TSA Innovation Checkpoint (ICP), part of the Advancing the Checkpoint (ACE) program at the Harry Reid International Airport (LAS). The ICP allows the TSA Innovation Task Force (ITF) to test an entire network of unique capabilities without interrupting airport operations and ultimately inform requirements and processes for future screening environments. 

Current technology being demonstrated and toured at this checkpoint includes new approaches to Customer Movement Analytics, Enhanced Advanced Imaging Technology (AIT), Credential Authentication Technology-2 (CAT-2), and Computed Tomography (CT) integrated with Automated Screening Lanes (ASL). These technology demonstrations support enhanced security and operational efficiency, streamlined contactless passenger experiences, and strengthened identity management capabilities and passenger privacy with TSA. 

PRIVACY CONCERNS

As digital identity management and contactless biometrics efforts progress—within both industry and government—one of the most commonly voiced concerns was how to mitigate potential issues and/or mistrust regarding overall privacy. With increased public attention and misinformation surrounding facial recognition technology, many panels discussed the importance of transitioning marketing efforts to providing educational resources and creating opportunities for open dialogue to continue increasing acceptance. Many industry leaders currently involved in executing contactless biometrics confirmed that the data they are finding continues to demonstrate overall high public acceptance rates, once users opt-in, and/or have become more familiar with the new contactless process. 

As leaders in bringing this technology to the aviation industry, TSA and CBP remain open and transparent to the public on how facial recognition data is being used—including retention periods and the opt-in nature of the programs. Additionally, the agencies provide resources on their respective biometrics landing pages (CBP and TSA) and hold roundtable discussions and demonstrations on this technology for external stakeholders to address any additional questions. 

CLOSING 

As Dignari continues to focus on delivering mission-critical solutions and emerging technologies that both maximize effectiveness and build advantageous programs, it is vital to our team—and our client’s success—to ensure that we actively engage in these collaboration communities. Overall, we achieve more as a shared collective, and events such as FTE Global are essential to maintaining a spirit of innovation and encouraging an open dialogue with public industry and government experts. 

To learn more about this event and how you can also collaborate with global innovators and key players in this industry, please click here.