GET (JET) SET

Ever been the victim of a backof-an-uber panic attack pre-flight because your passport was still sitting on the kitchen bench? Well, your run to the airport is about to get a little less stressful. Facial recognition technology already goes hand-in-hand with a passport check at most major airports, but it could soon mitigate the need for the pesky little book altogether. Thanks to a $22.5 million deal with the Australian government, tech company Vision-box will soon start trialling a passport-free system at Canberra Airport using its advanced biometric scanning technology. It’s set to be rolled out nationwide by the end of 2019, allowing around 90 per cent of passengers travelling internationally to self-process.

Once you’ve sped through customs, if you’re flying business there’s a good chance that the most buzzed-about new thing for plane geeks, the Waterfront seat, will be waiting for you, with a fully customisable temperature, light and seat position – controlled from an app on your phone. Best of all, your preferences are stored within a network, so your ideal lighting is remembered the next time you fly. An excuse for an impromptu getaway if ever we’ve heard one.