There is growing government support for an intelligence-driven, risk-based approach to screening passengers at airport checkpoints, says the new head of the International Air Transportation Association (IATA).
Tony Tyler, who took the helm at IATA earlier this summer, says he is “very pleased” with steps being taken by the U.S. Department of Homeland security toward a risk-based approach to passenger screening. Speaking at the annual Aviation Security World Conference and Exhibition in Amsterdam earlier this month, Tyler likes how Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and Transportation Security Administrator John Pistole have engaged with both industry and the international community on aviation security solutions.
The two U.S. officials “have indicated alignment with the principles of the Checkpoint of the Future, which calls for a risk-based system,” Tyler says.
Last week the TSA began pilot testing at four airports a risk-based passenger screening program it calls PreCheck, which allows select passengers to receive certain benefits that expedite the screening process in return for voluntarily submitting to a more rigorous background check.
The expedited benefits include no longer having to remove shoes, lightweight coats, belts, or a laptop computer from a carrying case. The benefits also include not having to remove from a carry-on bag liquids that have been placed inside a one-quart plastic bag. Combined, the screening benefits also mean a speedier transit through the checkpoint.
Participants in PreCheck are still subject to random screening measures.
Passengers in PreCheck will have information embedded in the barcode of their boarding pass, which will be read at checkpoints to determine if a person will be referred to the expedited security lane. Each time a PreCheck member books a flight for domestic travel on a participating airline flying out of a participating airport, TSA will conduct an intelligence-driven risk assessment on the individual.
If successful, TSA plans to expand PreCheck to other airports and airlines, likely during 2012.
To strengthen confidence in the background checks worldwide by governments for risk-based passenger screening programs, Tyler says that the international police organization INTERPOL is working with governments on common standards for background checks.
In addition to the U.S., Tyler says a number of other countries agree with the concept.
Canada represents one of the “biggest opportunities” for risk-based passenger screening, Tyler says.
“Transport Canada and the Canadian Air Transport Security Agency (CATSA) are developing a strategy for differentiating passengers based on data-driven risk assessments and working to further mutual recognition of border security programs,” Tyler says. “CATSA also is expanding the use of the Trusted Traveler Screening Line for pre-approved travelers who hold a valid NEXUS card.”
Tyler also says that the European Commission is working toward developing concepts for a Checkpoint of the Future.
As for the technology that will help make the security screening experience a smoother and simpler affair for all, Tyler says that the stand-off detection systems that would go into the “Tunnels of Technology” that IATA unveiled over the summer are still up to seven years away.
The “Tunnels” are essentially security lanes for different sets of travelers that are segregated according to risk. While the lanes have different types of security technology, they include stand-off detection systems to help speed all passengers through the checkpoint.