Houston Airport Introduces Biometric at International Boarding Gates
George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston has added facial comparison technology to two boarding gates and plans to add the technology to three more before the end of this month. Later this fall, the airport plans to deploy the technology to 15 gates in total. The camera technology captures a traveler’s facial image and then cross-checks it against a database maintained by Customs and Border Protection to make sure the person is scheduled to leave the U.S. on a particular flight. The technology eliminates the need for passengers to prevent their boarding pass at the gate before entering the jetway. It is also used by CBP to verify that foreign nationals are departing the country in accordance with their visa terms. Use of the biometrics is mandatory for foreign nationals and U.S. citizens may opt out but then must present their boarding pass to the gate agent. The camera technology is being supplied by NEC and the Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority, which developed its own system called VeriScan. Houston’s William Hobby International Airport deployed the facial recognition technology earlier this year for all international arrivals and departures. NEC is providing the camera systems at Hobby.
Liteye Opens Field Operations Division Based on Counter UAS Experience
Liteye Systems has formed a new Field Operations Division that will provide consulting, fielding, training, services and support to system operators for all counter unmanned aircraft system (UAS) activities. Liteye says the new division is built on its experience supporting one of the first ever deployed combat proven C-UAS systems, the company’s Anti-UAS Defense System (AUDS), which has been deployed with the U.S. military since 2016. “Our team has combat support experience and has seen enemy tactics and techniques first-hand,” says Kenneth Geyser, co-founder and CEO of Liteye. “They know the intricacies of AUDS, electronic warfare and combined arms approach to fighting this threat.”
DroneShield Plans Software Upgrade for Counter Drone Products
DroneShield says it will release a software upgrade beginning July 1 for its counter unmanned aircraft system (UAS) products, including the body-worn RfPatrol MKII platform. The RfPatrol MKII is a passive drone detection device. The new update includes a number of new UAS models from multiple manufacturers, as well as performance enhancements and general firmware updates. The latest updates also include detection and identification of signatures commonly associated with first person view, hobbyist and homemade drones. DroneShield provides quarterly software updates to its products.