Air New Zealand introduces smart passport service

The airline's mobile app is now able to scan and save passport information and send a timely reminder when it's time to renew.

Every month around 550 customers turn up to the airport with an expired passport, triggering a stressful situation for would be travellers.

Air New Zealand customers can now save themselves the stress and embarrassment by using their smartphone camera to capture and save their passport details. Not only will this streamline their check-in experience, it also triggers expiry reminders including providing handy click through links to renew New Zealand, Australian, British and American passports.

Currently around 10 percent of Air New Zealand customers type their passport details incorrectly as they check in online. By saving these to their profile, customers will enjoy a faster check in experience and rest easy in the knowledge that their travel document has been entered correctly.

Air New Zealand’s Chief Digital Officer Avi Golan says customer feedback is driving the rollout of time-saving tools such as this and customers can look forward to an increasingly smarter digital travel experience - not just on the day of travel but in the dreaming and planning phase.

"Customers consistently tell us time is the biggest stress factor when travelling, so prioritising features that offer genuine benefits and convenience on the go is key.

"Integrating smartphone camera technology to our app paves the way for adding secure credit card scanning to our booking system, as well as longer term developments such as selfie-boarding - using biometrics and facial recognition to verify customers at the gate."

The Air New Zealand mobile app has been downloaded by 1.3 million people. Earlier this year the popular coffee ordering function clocked up two million orders.

Ends

Note to editors

Enhanced features now live in the Air New Zealand mobile app include:

• Multi pass management: Customers travelling as a family or group can download up to nine boarding passes for their group to their app – meaning the end of paper boarding passes for travellers who do not have their own device, such as young children.
• Baggage management: Purchase a bag to add to an existing Seat only domestic fare.

Issued by Air New Zealand Public Affairs ph +64 21 747 320