On October 8, 2026, Vladimir Poteshkin, Deputy Minister of Transport of Russia, announced at the "Digital Solutions" forum plans to connect Chkalov Airport in Nizhny Novgorod to the biometric boarding system for flights in 2026.[1] According to the official, once the system is launched, all related services will become available to passengers of the air hub.[1]

The essence of the technology and the status of its rollout

With biometric boarding, passengers do not need to present a paper or electronic boarding pass at the pre-departure checkpoint — their identity is confirmed using biometric data.[2] The innovation is expected to reduce the load on check-in and access control desks and to shorten the time needed to complete pre-flight procedures.[3] The exact launch date and the terms of use of the service were not specified at the time of the announcement: these were plans, not a working system.[2] By that time, Chkalov Airport had already applied to take part in the pilot project.[1]

Context: the development of biometrics in transport

At the time of the announcement, biometric boarding in Russian airports was operating on an experimental basis: since June 2026, the service had been available at Sheremetyevo and Pulkovo airports.[1] Five more airports were planned to join the system in 2027.[4] In parallel, the Ministry of Transport was working on extending biometrics to rail transport, primarily to high-speed trains.[1] By then, biometric boarding was already in operation on a number of rail routes: since April 2026, on trains from Moscow to Nizhny Novgorod, Kostroma, and Ivanovo, and since August, on the Nizhny Novgorod–Kirov and Nizhny Novgorod–Ivanovo routes.[1]

Sources

  1. NIA "Nizhny Novgorod" — Biometric boarding to be introduced at the Nizhny Novgorod airport in 2026, Nizhny Novgorod News (archive)
  2. Open Nizhny — Nizhny Novgorod airport plans boarding without a boarding pass — Society
  3. Newsroom24 — Nizhny Novgorod airport plans to launch biometric boarding in 2026 — Transport
  4. Living in Nizhny — Biometric flight boarding to be launched at the Nizhny Novgorod airport in 2026 — Living in Nizhny