ATW correspondant Karen Walker reported about the head of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA) has called for the US aviation security system to break free from its mindset of treating every passenger as a potential terrorist.
WASHINGTON – Speaking at the International Aviation Club in Washington DC last Thursday, Association of Asia Pacific Airlines Director General Andrew Herdman criticized the way security measures are conducted in the United States, reported Karen Walker, US correspondent of the magazine Air Transport World.
“Effective security procedures must balance risks against costs and inconvenience to the travelling public. For many passengers, security procedures are cited as the least satisfactory part of the air travel experience. Harsher critics have characterized current passenger screening procedures as ritualistic ‘security theatre’,” Herdman said.
“What we have is a mistrusted traveller’s programme, with 100% enrollment. We need to break free of the current mindset that by default treats every passenger as a potential terrorist, leading to overwhelmingly false positives in the screening process.”
Herdman said that IATA’s Checkpoint of the Future concept study and trusted traveler programs are steps in the right direction, but do not go far enough. He also called for governments to work cooperatively and with the many international stakeholders that are involved in aviation security.
Long lines for immigration and customs clearance are another issue that needs to be addressed, Herdman added. “Given the fact that most passengers’ details have already been provided in advance to the governments involved, one might expect smoother processing of arriving visitors. This is another opportunity for governments and industry to work together to streamline this aspect of the passenger experience.”
Lines at immigration are on the increase all across the world, including in Asia. Long waiting times at immigration are recurrent those days at airports such as Bangkok Suvarnabhumi, Hong Kong, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Manila or Shanghai Pudong.
Luc Citrinot a French national is a freelance journalist and consultant in tourism and air transport with over 20 years experience. Based in Paris and Bangkok, he works for various travel and air transport trade publications in Europe and Asia.
