Air Canada passengers at Toronto Pearson International Airport can now enroll through the airline’s mobile app to use a new facial-verification boarding process. The pilot program includes four biometric e-gates: one for domestic travel and three for transborder trips to the United States.
Hardware and Software Providers for Biometric Gates
Dormakaba supplies the physical biometric gates installed at Toronto Pearson. Middleware connecting the gates to identity management systems is provided by Airsphere and SITA. Air Canada operates the domestic passenger enrollment software and maintains the traveler identity gallery used for facial image comparisons during boarding.
Participation in the biometric gate pilot is voluntary, and traditional document checks
remain available for all passengers at Toronto Pearson.
Passenger Experience and Pilot Metrics
Domestic passengers who opt in via the Air Canada app can use a live facial image captured at the gate to verify their identity against the airline’s identity gallery, allowing them to bypass the final passport and boarding pass presentation. For US-bound travelers, biometric verification occurs through the preclearance process at Pearson where facial images are already captured, eliminating the need for separate advance registration for the three transborder gates.
Toronto Pearson International Airport is monitoring enrollment rates, processing times, passenger volumes, and customer satisfaction during the pilot. The current deployment focuses
exclusively on boarding procedures.
Background and Long-Term Airport Strategy
Toronto Pearson handles approximately 47 million passengers annually, with projections expecting a rise to 65 million by the early 2030s. The biometric gates pilot is part of a larger airport modernization initiative adopting digital identity and automated passenger processing technologies to accommodate increased future traffic.
This pilot builds on Air Canada’s previous mobile-based traveler identity program and complements other Canadian biometric projects, including a separate facial recognition boarding initiative at Calgary Airport.
