VINCI Airports has launched the first travel assistant that makes use of facial recognition technology. This technology will allow passengers to pass through the checkpoints at various airports without physical contact with the most of the airport workers.
The name of this travel assistant is Mona. It was launched on October 5 2020 by the Chairman and CEO of VINCI Xavier Huillard and CEO of VINCI Concessions and President of VINCI Airports, Nicolas Notebaert, at the VINCI Airports Centre of Excellence for Innovation based at Lyon-Saint Exupéry airport.
Notebaert stated during the launching ceremony that “With Mona, VINCI Airports is launching a world-first that adds a new dimension to the airport experience. At a time when contactless technology is proving increasingly important, and personalisation is becoming the norm, our network once again proves it is able to continuously reinvent itself,”
The introduction of Mona places VINCI Airports as the first airport operator around the globe that will offer passengers the privilege to “trial a biometric journey from their home to the plane.”
How it works?
“Mona allows travellers to set up a customer account by downloading an app to their smartphone in the comfort of their own home or at a terminal in the airport in order to take advantage of this new service, completely free of charge. Thanks to facial recognition technology and a special journey through the airport, Mona users can go through the various checkpoints in the airport – from luggage drop off to boarding (with the exception of border control) – without making any physical contact, simply by showing their face.” VINCI
Aside from making check-in easy and without physical contact during this Covid 19 era, Mona also offers other personalised services and experiences for its users. And Mona is developed with the approval of the French data protection agency. Hence, users can rest assured that their rights and privacy are protected.
Mona comes with a one-year free trial and is available for passengers travelling through Lyon‑Saint Exupéry airport using Transavia (on flights to Porto) and TAP Air Portugal (on flights to Lisbon) for now.
