"Holly" and "Graham" have arrived

[Kip Powick]

They look real, they sound real, and they even wear nice clothes.

Two U.K. airports have unveiled holograms dressed as employees to help inform flyers about airline and luggage rules.

They’re so convincing that some passengers have reportedly tried to hand them their passports.

It is also the same technology behind bands like Gorillaz.

London Luton Airport unveiled Monday two holograms of a man and a woman, nicknamed Holly and Graham, who are actors in real life.

Wearing golf shirts and dress pants, the holograms tell passengers how to prepare for the flight before entering the airport security area, spokesperson Louise Ross told the Star.

The holograms, designed by Tensator, are part of an initiative to simplify the security process and flow of lineups, she said. She declined to reveal the project’s cost.

Manchester Airport also unveiled two holograms, of current customer-service employees, on Friday.

The man and woman, each wearing dress shirts and slacks, are perched behind waist-high podiums, hands clasped in front of them.

They explain the liquids-restriction rules to passengers but can be programmed to say anything, Manchester spokesperson John Greenway told the Star.

“I think they’re still finding it quite strange,” he said. “They’re standing right next to them all day watching themselves.”

The holograms, which stand between check-in and security, are the average height of a person, and the images are “quite clear,” he said.

“I think that’s why (passengers) keep getting them mixed up with real people.”

A projection kit beams from behind a kind of “glass mirror” in the shape of the person, and speakers are attached.

They can be turned on and off at any time, he added, including during quiet periods inside the airport.

These holograms, created by Musion, are also part of a trial initiative, separate from the other airport, to help improve customer service by taking over niche jobs.

They could be used to direct people to terminals and parking-payment areas, or stand near escalators to warn flyers not to place extremely heavy suitcases on them, which has been a specific problem for the airport, Greenway said.

There are no plans to replace real employees with holographic ones, he added.

At Luton, hologram technology is also being considered for use in customer service and retail outlets inside the terminal.

The holograms being used at Manchester are free, Greenway said, but the airline will have to pay fees if it decides to keep them long-term.

[Fido]

It is not going to help.

The once a decade 'frequent flyer' cannot cope with understanding what is required of them at airport security.