E-gates go live at Heathrow

Following a successful trial, Heathrow has now installed self-service e-gates at Terminal 1. The gates incorporate facial recognition technology and Aurora Computer Services’ Atkins Passenger Authentication Scanning Systems (PASS).

International travellers simply scan their boarding cards and the gates automatically open to allow them to proceed. However, if the boarding card is for a domestic flight, the gates go into enrolment mode.

Passengers have their faces captured by the camera, which enrols the image and links their face to their boarding pass.

Passenger faces and boarding cards are then checked and verified when they exit the lounge to gain access to the boarding gate.

A screen is built into the facial recognition units giving passengers simple instructions for use.