Results of the International Air Transport Association (IATA)’s 2025 Global Passenger Survey show a strong desire to move towards mobile and digital ID systems – and Ryanair is ahead of the curve
Love it or loathe it, Ryanair is often ahead of the curve, and so it seems with its switch to mobile boarding passes, backing a digital trend highlighted by airline trade body IATA.
Just ahead of Ryanair’s move to digital from 12 November, IATA surveyed 10,000 passengers globally and found 78% of them want to use a smartphone combining a digital wallet, digital passport and loyalty cards to book, pay and navigate airport processes.
App Booking and Digital Payment Also Trending Up
When it comes to booking, IATA’s Global Passenger Survey found airline websites remain the most popular choice at 31%, but this has dipped sharply from 37% last year.
This fall contrasts with apps, which are preferred by 19% of travellers, trending up from 16% in 2024. A quarter of all younger travellers told IATA they prefer apps, a strong indication the shift to mobile technology will strengthen over time.
IATA found the ways we prefer to pay for travel are also changing. Credit and debit cards remain dominant at 72% but are down from 2024’s 79%. In contrast, digital wallet use has increased significantly from 20% to 28%.
The research also found three-quarters of travellers are willing to share biometric information if it means they don’t need to show a passport or boarding pass, with those in tech-savvy Asia-Pacific particularly onboard with this concept.
Biometrics Adoption Dependent on Government Action
However, IATA believes there is some way to go before we are all gliding seamlessly through airports and booking via mobile technology.
“Passengers are already using biometrics for different stages of their journey, from check-in to boarding,” says Nick Careen, IATA’s Senior Vice President Operations, Safety and Security. “But to make the international travel experience fully digital, governments need to start issuing digital passports and enable their secure recognition across borders.”
Furthermore, a full shift to biometrics is far from straightforward for airports and airlines. It requires them to not only be technologically ready, but operationally prepared. The downfalls have already been highlighted by the rollout of the new EU Entry/Exit System (EES) last month.https://www.businesstraveller.com/news/new-iata-survey-reveals-the-future-of-travel
