Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) could soon become the first Airport in India to phase out the widely used gadgets-in-tray security check system. As per the Moneycontrol report, passengers at KIA’s Terminal 2 (T2) will soon be no longer required to take out personal electronic devices, like mobile phones and laptops, from handbags for security checks.
A trial run for the Computer Tomography X-ray (CTX) machine will soon begin within the next few weeks at KIA’s T2, said Bengaluru International Airport Limited which operates the KIA facility. As per officials, the CTX machine will be integrated with the Automatic Tray Retrieval System (ATRS) and full-body scanners. Initially, the new system is intended exclusively for domestic passengers and is expected to become operational in December 2023.
Speaking with Moneycontrol, Chief Operating Officer of BIAL, Satyaki Raghunath said, “The trial run for the CTX machine at T2 will begin within the next few weeks.”
He added, “KIA will be the first airport in India to begin passenger trials for the CTX machine, which will be integrated with the Automatic Tray Retrieval System (ATRS) and full-body scanners.”
As per BIAL officials, three full-body scanners have been installed at T2 to ensure a faster and more secure flying experience.
Explaining the operational part, BIAL’s COO Raghunath added, “Operators can rotate the view to look at the contents of bags, cutting down on re-checks and physical inspection. Also, the new system will reduce the number of trays required per person during security screening.”
“This means passengers will be able to leave their electronic items (laptops, etc.) and LAGs (liquids, aerosols, and gels) in their bags and go through a quicker screening process. It will also reduce processing time at security checkpoints. Removing fewer items from luggage means fewer trays, speeding up divesting and reducing contact points, thus improving hygiene,” the official was quoted saying by Moneycontrol.
The new security screening system will eliminate the need for patting down passengers following an initial screening which is done by the walk-through metal detector.
Raghunath further stated, “The CTX Proof of Concept (POC) is undergoing trial at T2. The installation and integration with ATRS lanes are currently underway, and trials on passengers will begin very soon.”
According to the official, advanced screening of carry-on baggage using CT and automatic explosives detection algorithms will improve security outcomes. Additionally, superior 3D image quality and CT can better identify the density of liquids.
The KIA’s Terminal 2 (T2) which is also known as a ‘terminal in a garden,’ was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in November 2022. It was built with a budget of around Rs 5,000 crore and the domestic operations on the T2 began on 15th January this year. The International flight operations began from this Terminal on 12th September.
The Airport’s Terminal 1 (T1) caters to domestic flights while T2 is dedicated exclusively to international carriers.
More airports will have to follow this new system by year end
Earlier in April this year, the Times of India had reported that the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) has asked big airports to install full body scanners and X-ray Computed Tomography (CTX) machines by 31st December 2023. The report noted that airports which handle over 50 lakh passengers annually have been asked to install these machines but most operators are likely to miss the deadline. In line with that, airports in Pune, Kolkata and Delhi are also making switch to new system and progress for trials are underway.
As per media reports, Delhi airport has conducted CTX trials but it is yet to carry out passenger trials for the CTX machine, integrated with ATRS and full-body scanners.
A spokesperson for Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL) said, “CTX trials were conducted at IGIA in Terminal 2 from February 2023 to May 2023. Based on the trials, feedback is now awaited from stakeholders.”
Meanwhile, Delhi’s IGI Airport currently does not have full-body scanners, the report added.
The spokesperson added, “CT & FBS are under procurement. Trials for CTX were also conducted at Mumbai and Bengaluru airports. The major advantages of the facility are passenger convenience, enhanced security screening, ease of screening/identification of threat articles, smoother passenger transit, and faster security screening.”
A brief about Computer Tomography X-ray and Full body scanner technology
Computed Tomography X-ray (CTX) machines offer a non-destructive method to visualise internal features within solid objects and gather digital information about their 3-D geometries and properties. The resulting images are segmented into smaller ones, each corresponding to a specific thickness.
Unlike regular digital images made up of pixels, CT slice images are created using voxels (volume elements). A complete 3D representation is formed by compiling a series of contiguous CT slices. The grey levels in these images show X-ray attenuation, indicating how much X-rays are scattered or absorbed in each voxel. This depends on X-ray energy, material density, and composition.
Using this data, a CT scanner generates a highly detailed tomogram (slice) of the bag. The scanner can then compute the mass and density of each item within the bag based on this tomogram. If an object’s mass/density aligns with that of a potentially hazardous material, the CT scanner alerts the operator to the presence of a potential safety concern.
Full-body scanners make passengers stand inside until an image is taken, unlike the current practice of walking through a metal detector. If the scanner doesn’t show anything unusual, no further checks are needed, unlike the current system where officers also use a handheld metal detector and sometimes do a pat-down search.
Several trials of full-body scanners were conducted in the past in India, but the final installation was halted. Initially, passengers were skeptical about the scanner images, and the BCAS also had concerns about blank spots from these machines. However, full-body scanners are gradually being introduced at airports worldwide.