Evolving airport technology may be changing the way travellers fly

Posted on Thursday 09 February 2012 in Travel, Australia, England, Flights, Melbourne, Sydney, London

Although Aussie travellers may love using technology to gather information and advice on their upcoming getaway, these advancements can also be an important part of tourism safety. - Flights Travel News

Although Aussie travellers may love suing using technology to gather information and advice on their upcoming getaway, these advancements can also be an important part of tourism safety. While tech devices, apps and gadgets are fun to use, the improvements in protecting those using public transportation to travel is vital, especially as taking overseas trips becomes more accessible and popular. This may especially be especially true in the world's airports, as many are susceptible to being compromised by groups who do harm. Fortunately, some experts say that most airports are very safe and are only become becoming even more well protected as technology continues to evolve. Travellers taking future holidays may notice some of these changes in international airports everywhere.

The future may bring some amazing advancements to airports. Reuters reports that things such as smartphone scans, which have already begun to be introduced at home some places, could be the norm and majority in the next several years. Security may be monitored more by cameras than in person and all bag drops offs may be fully automated. Small steps are being made in airports to start introducing these concepts, but experts want to make sure that things will go well without too many problems first.

Some of these changes may cause slight delays or inconveniences for passengers, especially when since the technology is not yet perfect. According to The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, there may be some law laws passed in the Land Down Under where all airport patrons will have to take a full-body scan if asked to do so. This large device is part of the security screening process, and will take a kind of X-Ray image of the person to check for prohibited materials. This technology does help catch potentially bad items, but some say it also compromises people's privacy.

If the law does pass, travellers will first see the devices when taking flights to Sydney or flights to Melbourne. More airports could be added to the list if the idea is received favourably. Transport Minister Anthony Albanese assured those wary of the scanners that no details besides the questionable materials can be seen on the screen and no images can be stored either.

"[The scanner shows] a generic male outline, a generic female outline - it simply will identify the spot on the outline where there's something that needs to be checked," Mr Albanese said, as quoted by the news source.

Due to the new ideas and technology being introduced, sometimes the advancements are too innovative and not all of the issues have been worked out. Security, for instance, will be at the utmost importance during the summer Olympic Games this year in England. Those who have booked London holiday packages may have seen some unique safety measures at the airport, but some officials say now they may not be installed in time.

According to The Guardian, governmental experts wished to have facial scanners at Heathrow International Airport ready for the influx of travellers., However, the idea did not go according to plan and the installation had to be delayed, which may push it back until after the games. Although tech devices in security can be useful, if not executed properly, their development can be expensive and not inefficient.

Since the advancements of technology are allowing for tighter security measures and more comfortable procedures for passengers, Aussie travellers should merely be aware of these types of changes and be prepared for the various things they may see differently at transportation hubs across the globe.

Print this article »

Share this post: