Punta Cana International Airport Reports ‘Significant Improvements’ from SITA’s Biometric eGates

Eight months after implementing a biometric passenger screening system provided by SITA, the management of Punta Cana International Airport (PUJ) are reporting great success in its operation.

Over 340,000 travellers have made their way through the biometric eGates so far, with SITA’s technology scanning their faces and matching them to the biometric data stored in their passports’ electronic chip. The system was implemented in Terminal 1 of the airport at the start of this year, with an expansion to Terminal 2 in July.

In a statement, the airport reports that the technology has delivered “significant improvements in passenger processing times, with passengers clearing the immigration checks in just seconds.” Elaborating further, Punta Cana International Airport CEO Frank Elías Rainieri said that the airport has seen “passengers taking as little as ten seconds to go through the border checks.”

It’s a testament to the power of biometric passenger processing, which is currently taking off at airports around the world thanks to converging interests from both border control agencies and air travel stakeholders keen on efficiencies. And given that PUJ, as the Dominican Republic’s busiest airport, processes 7.6 million passengers per annum, SITA’s technology could make an even bigger impact if its use is further expanded in that location – which, if it follows the broader trend in airport biometrics, it will be.

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November 15, 2018 – by Alex Perala