Biometric at Airports

More than 1,600 employees and 1.7 million passengers passed through London City Airport in 2002, making it one of the United Kingdom's busiest airports for business travel. Two events in 2001 and 2002 led the airport to conduct a full-scale review of its security procedures and policies. The first was the horrific 9-11 attacks in the United States.

Second, two robberies unrelated to terrorism at Heathrow Airport targeted security vans within the airport's Restricted Zone (RZ) in early 2002. The robberies and the terrorist threat led the Metropolitan Police to call for tighter aviation security, with an emphasis on CCTV coverage and access control.



The airport identified the entry points to the RZ as being the top priority for an access control upgrade. London City Airport's RZ includes passenger departure areas in the airport's Jet Centre (a corporate aviation facility) and Terminal Building, baggage claim areas, cargo sheds, and mail centers--all of which are collectively referred to as airside areas. Airside cleaning and catering premises are also in the RZ. Only persons and vehicles authorized by the airport manager can enter the zone, including passengers intending to depart from the airport, who are subject to search, as is their baggage. This article focuses on employees access to the RZ.

Before the security upgrade, airport security staffed the entry/exit points to the RZ, visually inspecting the photograph on an employee's identification pass to confirm its validity. The airport realized through threat assessments and discussions with other practitioners that although no known breaches had occurred, this method created the potential for someone to enter the RZ with a forged pass.

Selecting biometrics. In January 2002, London City Airport began assessing technology solutions that could satisfy its need for enhanced security. As part of this effort, the airport identified a number of key requirements for any potential solution: It had to be cost-effective and flexible, user-friendly, secure and robust, compatible with existing access control systems, and able to comply with industry regulations. These regulations included the Aviation Security Act of 1982, which authorizes the Secretary of State for Transport to issue directives relating to aviation security.