Security checks at Indian airports could soon get a lot easier, with passengers likely to be spared the drill of taking out their tablet computers from hand baggage for the X-ray inspection. The Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) has cleared for tests an American security company’s scanner that does not require personal electronic devices (PED) with non-detachable batteries, like tablets, to be taken out of handbags for checks.
The device will be tested at Indira Gandhi International Airport’s Terminal 3 on a pilot basis and approved for use if the results are good. Most airports in the west do not require passengers to pull out PEDs with non-detachable batteries from handbags for separate scans. “The BCAS has allowed proof of concept (testing a new system to see if it works well and can be used at our airports) of this new technology that will enhance security and passenger satisfaction,” BCAS chief Kumar Rajesh Chandra said.
In addition, BCAS has allowed the Hyderabad airport to test an “automatic tray retrieval system (ATRS)”, which will direct handbags that require further checks to a separate place while letting the cleared bags pass through to waiting passengers. The airport’s feedback to BCAS has so far been positive. The Bengaluru airport had earlier conducted successful trials of the system.
