American Airlines has launched its Touchless ID program for AAdvantage members at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA), with plans to expand to more airports in the near future. This innovative facial recognition technology aims to streamline airport security, reducing wait times and enhancing the travel experience by allowing passengers to breeze through TSA checkpoints without needing to present physical IDs.

Upgraded Points reports that American Airlines will be rolling out the service in Atlanta, New York LaGuardia, and Salt Lake City next, which American said are “coming soon”. The airline surely also has plans to expand the initiative to its major hubs such as Dallas-Fort Worth, Chicago, and Miami, where the technology promises a faster, safer way to navigate congested airports as summer travel peaks.

How Touchless ID Works At American Airlines

American Airlines is not the first carrier to offer touchless ID at US airports, and its program works in a very similar fashion to the other airlines that have partnered with TSA for their own initiatives. In order to use the service as an American Airlines passenger, you will need the following:

• Be an active AAdvantage member
• Be a current TSA PreCheck user
• Have a Known Traveler Number (KTN), issued as part of TSA PreCheck
• Have a valid US passport

With these to hand, travelers can then opt the service anywhere they access their AAdvantage account. This opt-in remains valid for a year, and passengers can opt out at any time. Then it is as simple as finding and using the dedicated Touchless ID security lane at the airport, which is invariably the fastest way through security - even faster than standard TSA PreCheck and Clear. However, it is worth noting that travelers should still carry a physical ID in the event of any need for manual checks.

Julie Rath, senior vice president of customer experience at American Airlines, says that this is just the first step in the airline's use of biometrics. She sees opportunities to expand Touchless ID across more airports and integrate it for baggage check, boarding, and lounge access. She said:

"This is the future of frictionless travel. The technology delivers a more seamless and secure travel experience for our customers, and we plan to expand it to all areas of our customers' journeys with American Airlines."

The Other US Carriers Offering Touchless ID

Avid readers will know that American Airlines is actually slightly late to the game when it comes to using biometrics. It was Delta Air Lines that first partnered with TSA back in 2021 in the creation of its Digital ID program. It provides the service to SkyMiles members with the same TSA PreCheck and passport requirements, allowing passengers to use facial recognition for security screening at seven US airports. It has also expanded the use of biometrics to include baggage drop and boarding of aircraft.

Airlines Offering Touchless ID At US Airports

Alaska Airlines	Atlanta, Washington Reagan
American Airlines	Washington Reagan
Delta Air Lines	Atlanta, Detroit, Los Angeles, New York JFK, New York LaGaudia, Salt Lake City, Washington Reagan
United Airlines	Atlanta, Chicago, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Newark, New York LaGaudia, Salt Lake City, Washington Reagan

Alaska Airlines has also started offering biometric security screening, and a major lift to the program happened last year when United Airlines began offering it, expanding the service to a host of new airports. Given that there are digital ID partnerships with other airlines already live at American Airlines hubs such as ORD, JFK, LGA, and LAX, we can surely expect to see American Airlines rapidly expand the number of airports where it offers the service.

Some Passengers Are Concerned About Privacy

Despite the Touchless ID service offering significant (and growing) advantages for navigating increasingly congested airports, some passengers still have concerns. Many are skeptical, believing that the TSA will at some point use biometrics to surveil people. But TSA Administrator David Pekoske is on record as saying "this is not something that we are going to do. There is a sole use case, and no other use case other than identity verification."

Others are worried that the TSA stores facial images forever, and people may be giving up their privacy protections. However, this is also not the case. As soon as a passenger walks away from identity verification, that facial recognition data is erased in a fully audited process. As Delta Air Lines explains on its website: "Verifying a customer’s identity against the flight manifest is required by law and has been for many years. Facial matching technology is just a different, automated way of performing this task, and is completely optional."