Air France, Orange, SITA, Toulouse-Blagnac Airport and RESA have announced they have joined forces to provide the first seamless boarding experience in Europe with NFC technology.
Over the next six months, the Touch&Pass app will enable a panel of passengers travelling on Air France flights from Toulouse-Blagnac to Paris-Orly to use their Orange NFC-based smartphones to quickly and conveniently move through the airport.
The technology will allow passengers to automatically receive their NFC boarding pass on their smartphones using their usual check-in method. By simply tapping their mobile on a reader in the airport, they will be able to pass through the different steps of their journey, including priority lanes for security control, lounge access and boarding.
Jean-Christophe Gaudeau, Ground Product Innovation Manager at Air France KLM, said: “Air France is committed to constantly searching for new products, innovative solutions and services that can improve the travel experience for our customers and make their trip easier before, during and after their flight. Air France’s participation in the testing of NFC technology at boarding illustrates its desire to be a pioneer in the field of innovation for the benefit of our passengers.”
Jim Peters, Chief Technology Officer, SITA, said: “This is a perfect example of how SITA and our strategic research arm, SITA Lab, collaborate with our partners to test a variety of new technologies and lead innovation in the air transport industry. This trial with Air France and Orange marks the first NFC boarding pass that provides a truly interoperable and scalable solution for the industry.”
Thierry Millet, Vice President of Mobile Payments and Contactless Program at Orange, said, “NFC technology allows Air France passengers to test this new way to embark. It’s simpler and faster. The new solution relies on two industry standards: an IATA standard from the air transport industry and an NFC standard from GSMA for the mobile industry. This opens the door to a large-scale industrial roll-out.”
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