The chairman of a House subcommittee that oversees the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) wants the agency to look at the additional staff and resources it would need to strengthen a year-old task force charged with bringing new capabilities and technologies aimed at strengthening aviation security and at the same time improving efficiencies.
Rep. John Katko (R-N.Y.), chairman of the House Homeland Security Transportation and Protective Services Subcommittee, said at a hearing in late April that he would like TSA’s response by May 5.
TSA currently has 14 full-time employees devoted to its Innovation Task Force, which also leverages personnel elsewhere in the agency, and its industry partners, including airports and airlines, Steve Karoly, acting assistant administrator for the agency’s Office of Requirements and Capabilities Analysis. He said the vision is to have 25 full-time employees as part of the task force.
Katko said he wants a “couple of scenarios” from Karoly with more specifics on personnel needs and how Congress can help “really, truly turbocharge this task force idea, because what we want to do is be able to get the technologies … that’s cutting edge on the front lines.” He added that the task for is “one of the keys” to getting technologies applied to aviation security faster than is now the case.
Karoly said that in “an unconstrained environment, we could always do more if we received more.” With more resources, he said he would do more planning and strategy in additional functional areas, such as “more testing and assessment of other technologies.” He would also like to do more systems integration of technologies that are deployed.
Katko also lauded the public/private partnership framework that is a hallmark of the Innovation Task Force’s working model, saying it is “one of the best things TSA has done in a long time.”
The task force concept was created by former TSA Administrator Peter Neffenger just over a year ago and it quickly resulted in the operational testing of new Automated Screening Lanes beginning at two passenger checkpoint security lanes at Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. Key features of the new “smart lanes,” which have since expanded to 51 security lanes at four U.S. airports, include automated bin return systems, five-point divesture stations, and exit diverters that move suspect carry-on bags to a parallel track for additional screening and to prevent a traveler from being able to access the parcel.
Roosevelt Council, general manager of Hartsfield-Jackson, told the committee that smart lanes have improved passenger throughputs by about 30 percent. He said there is still a learning curve for passengers to adapt to the new lanes. Automation also benefits TSA and the airport, he said, adding that in time the efficiencies could help “propel” long-term growth at the airport, which is seeing record numbers of travelers.
Delta Airlines paid for the first two smart lanes at Hartsfield-Jackson and the airport the rest, Council said. At Newark Liberty International Airport, United Airlines paid for the automated lanes, Jeanne Olivier, assistant director for aviation security and technology at the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, told the panel. At John F. Kennedy International Airport, which will soon get the smart lanes, they will be paid for by Delta and American Airlines, she said.
L3 Technologies [LLL] currently provides the smart lane components, which also include software and other capabilities that the company says will eventually lead to more efficiencies and better use of resources. There are a total of five manufacturers of the smart lane technology worldwide, Karoly said, noting that the agency has approved smart lane technology from OSI Systems’ [OSIS] Rapiscan Systems division and Vanderlande, and Smiths Detection and Scarabee Aviation Group for deployment to U.S. airports.
Systems from the two additional manufacturers are also being tested, Karoly said.
TSA is working with 21 airports to eventually deploy the smart lanes, Karoly said. This summer TSA will determine if the smart lanes become a program of record, which would require the agency to begin using its own funding to purchase the systems, he said.
For the past year the task force has been focused on the Automated Screening Lanes but soon will be testing new technologies, beginning with computed tomography (CT)-based screening systems to scan carry-on bags. The CT systems have been used since 9/11 to automatically screen checked bags for explosives.
Karoly said a CT system will be installed at Phoenix Sky Harbor airport in about two weeks if it clear final checks. That system will be supplied by L3. Another CT system will be installed shortly thereafter in Boston and or Chicago, he said. That system will be supplied by Integrated Defense & Security Solutions.
A third CT system being developed by another company for checkpoint screening still has to pass detection standard testing at the Transportation Security Laboratory, he said.
The CT technology has higher imaging resolution than the current Advanced Technology X-Ray systems that screen carry-on bags at airports. That higher resolution enables the automated detection of explosives at high screening standards and better allows an operator to detect other threats such as guns and knives. This technology is expected to further improve efficiencies and security at airports.
Karoly also said that this summer the Innovation Task Force will begin testing biometric technology at the front of screening lanes used by its PreCheck trusted travelers. The technology will be contact or contactless fingerprint scanners that one day could eliminate the need for the travel document checker by verifying both a person’s identity and Secure Flight vetting status, he said. This technology could also eliminate the need for a boarding pass, he said.
The Biometric Authentication Technology (BAT) will initially be tested at Hartsfield-Jackson and Denver International Airport.
The BAT technology is currently going through testing at the TSA’s Transportation Security Integration Facility, Karoly said.
The task force has begun a Passenger Communications initiative to help travelers be more efficient when they approach a security line. One idea is to use an avatar to discuss various ways passengers can help speed the process of transiting a checkpoint, he said. A pilot is planned for this summer at Hartsfield-Jackson.
Olivier said she would like the task force to begin putting some focus on “standoff” explosives detection technology to identify potential threats before someone gets to a checkpoint.
In May, TSA plans to release follow-on Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) to survey the market in specific innovation areas, including mobile screening, queuing and passenger flow, and new detection capabilities, Karoly said. If additional resources became available, he said he would like some funds to help small businesses help in demonstrating their capabilities under the BAA.