The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) will be testing self-service screening systems starting in January at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas.
Select passengers will be chosen for the screening, according to a TSA press release from November. The process is being tested with the goals of “increasing screening efficiency and improving the passenger experience while keeping a stable number of Transportation Security Officers.”
The Screening at Speed Program is designed to allow PreCheck passengers to complete the screening process with minimal or no assistance from TSOs.
“Like self-ordering kiosks at fast food and sit-down restaurants, self-service screening allows passengers in the Trusted Traveler Program to complete the security screening process on their own,” says John Fortune, Screening at Speed program manager. “Travelers will use passenger and carry-on screening systems at individual consoles or screening lanes themselves, reducing the number of pat downs and bag inspections TSOs need to perform and freeing their time to be reallocated to the busier aspects of screening operations.”
Companies have been developing concepts for the self-screening process since 2021, focusing on concepts, prototypes and hardware that meet TSA standards. One prototype was installed at Reagan Washington National Airport in D.C. Another model is currently undergoing testing in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Dave Lubach is executive editor of the facility market.
