Oh good grief, just have the issuing authority PKI sign the fingerprint image files and set up an authentication server with good failover characteristics. Use open source software so that anyone can implement an authentication gateway. It would be convenient to have only one authority, so the feds should do it. To keep the BIG BROTHER!!! freakers happy, make the whole thing an opt-in, finance the thing with fees to the adopters, and then let the adopters breeze through airport security. Done done and done. As for the people who don't *believe* in *fingerprint technology*, please stay out of my data center.