In this fourth installment of our five-part series highlighting the legal issues presented by blockchain, we’ll consider application to the aviation industry. Blockchain has the potential to increase airlines’ profitability by lowering transaction costs as well as improving efficiency and transparency, while simultaneously enhancing customer experiences.
As we discussed in the post “Taking Control of Your Identity,” digital identity verification is difficult and lacks trust – problems the blockchain can solve. And where is identity verification more important than when you’re standing in a long check-in line at the airport? Securely storing passenger information and identification on the blockchain will streamline passenger identity verification and may even reduce those long lines. Different airlines, airports and other entities can use the same shared, secure blockchain to create a universal digital identity system, significantly reducing operational costs. One blockchain startup is already developing a digital token that would contain all of a passenger’s travel documents and passport/identification in one place.