Qantas and Melbourne Airport Partner IATA and ACI to Pilot Smart Security

Australia’s Melbourne Airport, Qantas Airways, Airports Council International (ACI), and IATA have signed an agreement to work together to develop a Smart Security pilot program for delivery at Melbourne Airport in 2015.

Smart Security is a joint project between IATA and ACI that brings stakeholders together to facilitate the development of innovative solutions to shift today’s security screening towards a more passenger friendly, sustainable and efficient process. Smart Security looks to achieve this by focusing resources based on risk, using advanced security screening technologies and promoting innovations in process.

The agreement for Melbourne Airport is the fourth globally, following in the footsteps of Amsterdam Schiphol, London Heathrow and Doha’s Hamad International Airports.

“This partnership between Qantas and Melbourne Airport is an important step toward realizing a new model of security that will improve the experience for our passengers while boosting the efficiency of security checkpoints. Global passenger traffic is set to double in the next 20 years. Smart Security responds to this growth as well as continuously evolving security threats,” said Tony Tyler, IATA’s Director General and CEO.

Angela Gittens, ACI’s Director General, said, “ACI is looking forward to working with Melbourne Airport and Qantas in cooperation with IATA on the Smart Security pilot program. Having already trialed the program with three other airports, we’re confident that this latest pilot will result in a more streamlined Smart Security, making it even easier to implement for airports and airlines, and further speeding the security screening process for passengers.”

The signing of this agreement comes at the right time, with the Australian Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development recently releasing the Transport Development Outlook to 2025, indicating a move towards outcomes-based regulation across the transport sector and a desire to see industry participants play a larger role in the “design of measures that lead to more efficient and cost effective security outcomes”.

“Qantas is delighted to join with IATA, ACI and Melbourne Airport on this exciting program of work. We look forward to successfully trialing and implementing new processes that will provide a better, more seamless airport experience for customers while maintaining the highest security standards,” said Qantas CEO, Alan Joyce. The focus for the 2015 Pilot is on optimizing security screening resources and asset utilization, integrating innovative technology, repurposing existing equipment and implementing new procedures to facilitate risk-based passenger screening.”