IndiGo, Digi Yatra, BIAL Complete Contactless International Travel Trials at Bengaluru
- Contactless international passenger journey trial conducted at Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru, covering ticketing, booking and biometric processing.
- IndiGo and Digi Yatra extend SSI-based biometric system from domestic use to international passenger flows in India.
- Trials with IATA validate the use of digital identity for interoperable, cross-border passenger processing.
At Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru, technical trials show that a fully biometric, contactless international passenger journey—ticketing, booking management, and airport processing, can be handled in a single integrated digital framework.
The exercise brought together the DigiYatra Foundation, Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL), IndiGo and the International Air Transport Association (IATA), and forms part of IATA’s global Proof-of-Concept programme for contactless international travel.
The trials mark the first time in India that the DigiYatra ecosystem, already in use for domestic travel, has been extended to international passenger flows, making it a first-of-its-kind initiative in the country.
The system is built on a Self-Sovereign Identity (SSI) architecture, where passengers establish their identity digitally in advance and move through airport checkpoints using biometric verification, supported by app-based integration for sharing credentials such as boarding passes.
Earlier deployments between IndiGo and the DigiYatra Foundation had enabled contactless passenger processing and seamless exchange of boarding information between their applications; the current exercise extends that model to international operations and demonstrates that it can be scaled beyond domestic use.
The Bengaluru trials are also aligned with IATA’s One ID framework, which seeks to replace repeated identity checks with a single, verifiable digital identity across the journey.
The participation of an Indian airport and airline in this programme places the country within a small group of markets where such cross-border identity systems are being tested.
IATA has indicated that India is emerging as a global leader in digital and contactless travel, with its digital identity infrastructure supporting international use cases built on globally aligned standards and capable of being replicated in other markets.
Kempegowda International Airport has already implemented Digi Yatra across domestic operations and is now extending that approach to international traffic, where passenger processing involves additional coordination across security and border control functions.
The airport has followed a phased approach, supported by continued investments in seamless, technology-enabled passenger flows, with a focus on interoperability, passenger-controlled data and standardisation as volumes increase and as the ecosystem evolves.
BLR Airport handled 43.82 million passengers in 2025, becoming the first airport in South India to cross that mark, and has surpassed 350 million cumulative passengers since opening. It also processed 520,985 metric tonnes of cargo, continuing to rank as India’s leading airport for perishable cargo handling.
The trials demonstrate that identity can be established once and verified across multiple touchpoints using facial recognition, reducing the need for repeated document checks. The system follows a consent-led structure, where passenger data is shared only for defined purposes and remains under user control, with minimal, purpose-bound data usage.
Aligning with IATA standards enables true interoperability with other global travel ecosystems, allowing you to use the same model beyond a single airport or airline.
IndiGo’s role in the exercise has been to connect digital identity with the passenger journey from booking through to airport processing, building on its earlier work with Digi Yatra.
The airline says the trials confirm feasibility and scalability, moving the initiative from concept to implementation and showing its focus on customer-centric solutions and its intent to play a meaningful role in the evolution of global air travel.
Digi Yatra Foundation stated that the trials enabled an end-to-end digital journey in which a passenger’s identity is established in advance and verified across airport touchpoints using facial recognition, offering a glimpse into the future of international travel.
The approach is based on a privacy-first framework, limiting data usage to specific purposes, and is designed to support faster, more secure and globally trusted travel experiences. The exercise also places BLR Airport as the only airport in India currently participating in this IATA-led initiative alongside other leading airports and airlines globally.
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