Delta unveils new face scan baggage check at MSP

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. (KMSP) - Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport has had self serve check in kiosks for years. But the newest technology landing at the airport could make checking your bags a lot easier, too.

"It could speed up the process, but it could just delay the process, and I think it's about doing things with less people," Doug Norris of Albany, New York, said while making his way through the airport.

Delta Airlines will try out four self-serve baggage drop lanes at the airport this summer. One of those lanes will use facial recognition technology to match fliers with their passport photos, which Delta says is a first for a U.S. airline.

"We're one stage away from retinal scan aren't we? Mission Impossible," English traveler Kim Lonslough said.

A flier would still have to stop at the check in kiosk to print their baggage tags.

The facial recognition machine would then scan the traveler's face and boarding pass, before allowing them to put their luggage on a conveyor belt, without an agent's approval.

Delta said the self-serve bag drops could handle twice as many customers an hour as their human counterparts.

"It's fine to me. My experience with some facial recognition: 9 out of 10 times is works great. So, if they have a plan for the one time it doesn't work, great then. I think it's good for everybody," said Shannon Bailey of Minneapolis.

The self-serve bag drops are part of a lobby renovation that is supposed to make the check in process more efficient for travelers.

While face scans sound like something out of a science fiction movie, when it comes to checking your bags, the future is now.

"I think it will work. If it makes check-in quicker, it can't be a bad thing. More time in the bar," Lonslough said.
Delta said the machines cost $600,000 and will debut in a few weeks.

If things go well, the airline will roll them out nationally.