Delta is now piloting biometric boarding at Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA). You will have to be a Delta SkyMiles member and also be a member of the CLEAR program to participate. CLEAR is $99 per year for SkyMiles members, and I highly recommend the program for frequent travelers. Delta is also rolling out a biometric bag drop, which will be implemented this summer at DCA (already being tested at MSP).
How it works
CLEAR will capture and use both biometric and SkyMiles information to identify customers at bag drop, Delta Sky Club entry, and boarding. Eligible Members can now use their fingerprints to enter the Delta Sky Club and board Delta aircraft at DCA. The biometric boarding pass experience remains optional.
Coming Soon: Delta plans to extend passenger biometrics as ID and boarding pass to Delta’s DCA ticket counter workstations for bag drops. You will be able to check a bag with only your fingerprints.
Bottom Line
I'm a big fan of CLEAR so far and the partnership with Delta is offering quite a few benefits already. In the next few years, you won't need a paper or mobile boarding pass, and I imagine everything will be biometric (bag drop, security, boarding). Looking forward to future developments!