Sunday, 17 May 2009

• Technology of Airport Security

  I flew home for Mother's Day weekend to see my mom like a good son.  When I received an email from Continental Airlines to check-in, they presented me with an option to have my boarding pass sent to my cell phone.  They require your phone to be able to receive email, yes mine can, I was intrigued by this and I promptly chose that option. 

  After I finished checking-in I sync'ed my phone with my inbox and immediately an email from Continental Airlines dropped in.  The email contains a link to their secure website. Anxiously, I tapped on the link and it loaded my boarding pass in a browser!  My boarding consists of a QR code followed by my flight information.  I have heard about this on the news a while ago and now I'll be able to use it.  In case you're not sure what a QR code is, here's a sample.

  
  (source: Wikipedia)

  If you have a scanner that can read QR code, this one would say http://en.m.wikipedia.org.  When I arrived at the airport's security line, the person used a hand held scanner and grabbed the information off the QR code which verified my ID and flight, he confirmed it with my driver's license and let me through.  It was faster than reading your paper boarding pass but going through the metal detector is still painfully slow.  When it was time to board the plane, the personnel at the Continental counter didn't have a scanner and he had to type in a code manually.  I thought that was a little lame.

  I don't think every airport is equipped with these scanners yet because on my flight back I didn't have the option to use this.  It is convenient not having to go to a kiosk to print out your boarding pass when you arrive at the airport and you save some trees.  The bad thing about it is that you need a cell phone that have internet access, an email client, and a browser.  It's void if you print it out too, so if your phone craps out on you then you'll have to back track to obtain a paper boarding pass.  All this can get you through faster is the first security check, after that everything slows down again.

  Another option is to apply for a Clear Pass, that is if you fly frequently.

   

  You need to pay an annual fee of $199 and it's cheaper if you purchase multiple years worth of Clear Pass service.  This is only good for those who fly a lot, like multiple times a month.  There is a Clear Pass only lane for members to go through the security check point.  The major downside is that there are only 20 airports that you can use this at.

  It's good to see new technology spawning at airports to boost security and get people to their gate faster.  But the real problem is at the X-ray and metal detectors.  At least we have Xray machines that can see through your clothes, that way we won't have to take anything out of our pockets and our shoes off anymore.  They just have to install them at every airport!

  What enhancement would you like to see at a airport near you?

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