Passenger Terminal Today
Kylie Bielby
14 October 2024
Self-service options have been a familiar sight in airports for several years, with rows of check-in kiosks becoming commonplace around the world. The Covid-19 pandemic increased demand for more self-service options and now, with passenger numbers reaching record levels, self-service processes could also be deployed to help improve capacity issues at security checkpoints.
The United States Transportation Security Administration (TSA) certainly sees the potential. With the agency now screening as many as three million passengers in a single day, it is continuing to innovate to keep up with passenger demand without compromising on security. Its Innovation Checkpoint at Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) in Las Vegas is a much-publicized self-service screening prototype unveiled in March, in cooperation with the Department of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology Directorate (DHS S&T).
Announcing the initiative in March, TSA said the aim is “to provide a near self-sufficient passenger screening process while enabling passengers to directly receive on-person alarm information and allow for the passenger self-resolution of those alarms to reduce instances where a pat-down or secondary screening procedure would be necessary.”