Not that this is a magic solution to the UK's challenges, here's how a Thailand airport is approaching a similar problem:
Thai flyers get fast track (Bangkok Post)
The Autochannel is expected to help ease the chronic problem of understaffing that recently caused an uproar as passengers stood for hours in queues to have their documents checked manually.
Now passengers do not need to fill out the immigration form, known as Tor Mor 6 and regarded as a nuisance by many passengers, which has been done away with in many other countries.
A passenger simply opens the photo page of a passport and gently presses it on the scanner at the first section of the two-stage gate. It takes four seconds for it to read the document, causing the transparent barriers to swing open.
The passenger then takes a few steps to a second station to have his or her finger printed by a green light biometric reader and photo taken by a built-in camera installed on the column.
Halving passport processing time and speeding up passenger flows are the prime benefits rendered by Autochannel, explained Pol Col Viboon Kittiisaengsuwan, who supervises departure immigration at Suvarnabhumi.
