Airlines Oppose Airport Fingerprint Security Plan
Airlines and key members of Congress are set to oppose the US government's plan to make airlines fingerprint foreign visitors before they fly home.
The Homeland Security Department wants airlines to take overseas passengers' fingerprints prior to departing the US, in order to further bolster border security at airports across the country.
Last week, the House Appropriations Committee approved the plan to fingerprint departing foreigners to be included in the department's funding for financial year 2009.
However, some members of Congress - and airlines themselves - are unhappy that responsibility for fingerprinting will lie with airlines rather than the Homeland Security Department itself.
Air Passengers' Fingerprinting
The chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, Bennie Thompson, said that the Homeland Security department should be responsible for the airport fingerprint security plan, and that it was wrong to expect the private sector to shoulder the burden of the plan.
Thompson said: "A lot of us are concerned that they [Homeland Security] are now trying to pass off responsibility".
He commented that does not make sense for Homeland Security to fingerprint travellers on arrival, as they now do, and yet place responsibility for air passenger fingerprinting with airlines when travellers depart.
Thompson added that border and immigration security "have always been federal responsibilities", and should remain so.
Homeland Security Department
Airlines themselves have criticised the plan. Industry group the Air Transport Association (ATA) believe airlines would need to spend $12 billion over the next 10 years fingerprinting passengers.
These "staggering additional costs" cannot be met by the airline industry, says the ATA, especially a time of rising costs and market uncertainty.
Congressman Thompson is planning to hold a hearing later this month, at which it is intended to discuss different ways the fingerprint security plan can be implemented without airlines taking responsibility. These include opening fingerprint kiosks, run by airport security officials, at security checkpoints.
Stewart Baker from the Homeland Security Department said the department would be "open to being persuaded there is some other more effective and efficient way" to take fingerprints.
Source - Airport International's US Correspondent
Recent Related News Items:
Biometric Security at Airports -
Biometric Data Collection for Heathrow Airport Passengers
Foreign Visitors to Give More Biometric Data at US Airports
Further Resources:
Products & Services -
Companies supplying Airport Security
Companies supplying Biometrics
