Kempegowda trial offers glimpse of future era of contactless travel

Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport (BLR) has demonstrated that biometric technology can ensure a seamless and contactless journey for international passengers through its facilities.

Operator, Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL), in partnership with IndiGo, the Digi Yatra Foundation and IATA, successfully demonstrated integrated international travel flow from ticketing, managing bookings to a seamless, biometric-enabled journey, in technical trials at the airport.

This first-of-its-kind initiative in India was part of IATA’s global campaign of conducting Proofs-of-Concept (PoCs) for International Contactless travel journeys in key markets across the globe.

Earlier this year, IndiGo and Digi Yatra Foundation successfully implemented a cutting-edge Self-Sovereign Identity (SSI) based ecosystem that utilises biometric technology for contactless passenger processing at airports, and app-to-app integration which enables seamless sharing of boarding passes between an individual’s mobile applications.

Building on the successful model, IndiGo and Digi Yatra Foundation, in association with BIAL, have demonstrated the viability and scalability of this technology to enable international travel. This marks a significant step towards full‑scale deployment and ushers in the next phase of digital travel.

BLR has been at the forefront of implementing Digi Yatra, setting benchmarks for seamless and secure domestic passenger processing.

As international passenger volumes continue to grow, the airport is now advancing the next phase of biometric enabled travel for international passengers. It notes that this positions BLR as the only airport in India participating in this IATA-led global initiative alongside leading airports and airlines worldwide.

BIAL’s chief technical officer, George Fanthome, enthused: “We have taken a phased approach to building a biometric led travel ecosystem, supported by continued investments in seamless, technology enabled passenger flows.

“These new trials align with the airport’s broader vision of enabling contactless travel at scale, where passenger-controlled data, interoperability, and seamless experiences converge.

“As the ecosystem evolves, the focus will be on driving standardisation and enabling contactless journeys that can scale across other airports.”

IndiGo’s chief digital and information officer, Neetan Chopra, stated that his airline is committed to shaping the future of travel through innovation and customer‑centric solutions.  

While IATA’s chief information and data officer, Kim Macaulay, said: “India is emerging as a global leader in digital and contactless travel, and the work being done by IndiGo, Digi Yatra and Bangalore International Airport Limited clearly demonstrates what is possible when innovation, scale and collaboration come together.

“This proof‑of‑concept shows how India’s digital identity ecosystem can be extended beyond domestic travel to enable seamless international journeys, built on globally aligned standards.

“The success of these trials reinforces India’s role in shaping the next phase of passenger experience transformation, with solutions that can be replicated across the world.”