SINGAPORE - Eye scanners and information chips inside passports may soon be coming to an airport near you as the airline industry seeks to sharply reduce security check-in time and inconvenience.
The International Air Transport Association unveiled a mock-up Tuesday in Singapore of what it dubbed the "Checkpoint of the Future," where passengers separated by security risk would walk through one of three high-tech, 20-foot-long (6.1-meters-long) tunnels that can quickly scan shoes and carry-on luggage and check for liquids and explosives.
"Passengers should be able to get from curb to boarding gate with dignity," IATA Director General Giovanni Bisignani said. "That means without stopping, stripping or unpacking, and certainly not groping."
Airlines are seeking ways to win back passengers put off by long and irritating airport security measures who have opted to travel instead by train, boat or car. IATA said Monday it expects the industry's profit this year to plummet to $4 billion from $18 billion last year.
U.S. Transportation Security Administration chief John Pistole said he thinks IATA's security system, which it hopes to implement within five years, is a great idea.
IATA unveils new airport security check featuring iris scans, information chips in passports
