Melbourne Airport first to get 3D scanners at security gates
Passenger waiting times at airport security gates will be reduced to 60 seconds with the arrival of new technology being rolled out across the country, starting with Melbourne Airport.
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Airports across the country are set to roll out new security scanners that will allow passengers to keep liquids and laptops in their bags.
The technology will go live for the first time at Melbourne Airport today and is expected to cut passenger waiting times at security gates by 60 seconds, The Australian reports.
Melbourne Airport’s T4 terminal used by Jetstar, Tigerair, Rex and Airnorth will be the first in Australia to operate the devices, including medical-grade X-rays for bags, and body scanners rather than metal detectors for passengers.
“Computed tomography (CT) screening means everything stays in your bag, including laptops and liquids, resulting in a quicker process,” the airport’s head of security and emergency Scott Dullard told the publication.
“The other big thing most people will appreciate is a significant reduction in explosive trace detection that happens at the back of the lane.”
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Jordan Thrupp, the director of Smiths Detection, said the old machines used 2D technology.
“If you think of the CT machine as a giant camera and that camera turns the bag around at high speed and takes 3D images that are able to be viewed by operators in any direction,” he said.
“They’re able to rotate and turn the item to ensure they have much better visibility of the contents, which means they can more quickly and comprehensively identify whether there are any items in the bag that warrant further inspection.”
The federal government ordered the security upgrade following a plot to blow up an Etihad Airways flight over the Blue Mountains in July 2017.
Khaled Khayat, 51, and Mahmoud Khayat, 34, were found guilty in the New South Wales Supreme Court of trying to smuggle an explosive device hidden in a meat grinder.
Last month a third man, Amer Khayat from Sydney, was cleared by a military tribunal in Beirut of any wrongdoing based on insufficient evidence.
For more on this story see The Australian