Hi All,

Just wondering if any non-EU had tried the smart gates at MXP - according to Wikipedia (not the best source I know - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EGate_%28Italy%29?wprov=sfla1) some other nationalities are allowed to use them. However in the 3 times ive tried to use that like, i get rejected by the gate guards - i dont even get to try on the machines.

Is there any source online that says Canadians, Koreans, Japanese, etc are allowed to use it?

Does your passport include biometric data?

Yes, I was trying to use a Canadian passport issued after 2013 with biometrics and the chip.

I never got the machines , the gate dragons wouldn't even let me try.

The e-gates are for EU passengers only. In all honesty they're borderline useless, both in terms of user experience and advantage over the human controls. A police officer will look at your EU ID for a second, if anything; the e-gate will take at least 15 if not 20 seconds.

The comparison with the e-gates in FCO or VCE is embarrassing, even though those have been built by SITA in conjunction with the Italian ministry of interiors (marriage made in hell if you ask me).

The only difference between FCO, VCE or MXP is their ownership. Whilst FCO and VCE are private, MXP & LIN's managing company, SEA, is owned by the city of Milan and is used as a cash-cow to fund other departments that run a deficit year after year; the result is shoddy investment and sub-par infrastructure; just compare the public toilets in FCO with the ones even in the newest Satellite in MXP to see what I mean...

Thanks for the above comment; I travel through LIN/MXP four or five times a year and never exactly understood how SEA worked. Do you have any insight into the closing of LIN and the renovation project?

Nope, all I know is that they're resurfacing the runway and that, once it's done, LIN will be crammed with shops. I'm personally avoiding the area like the plague whilst it's closed; it'll be a throwback to MXP in the days of the hub, where nothing worked and it took ages to get your bags back or to board a plane... I doubt it's going to be good.

The good news is that M4 to LIN seems to be on track.