Centerlines - January 2008 - (Page 10)

R E G U L AT O R Y F R O N T Getting It Right Only the flawless deployment of new passenger vetting procedures will prevent airport turmoil B Y C A R ROL L MCCOR M IC K COMMERCIAL AIRLINES WILL shoulder most of the up-front burden of implementing pre-departure APIS (Advance Passenger Information System) and Secure Flight, but there’s little doubt that airports will also feel the impact. After years of debate and comment solicitation, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued its final rule on pre-departure APIS, which will take effect Feb. 19, 2008. DHS is in the process of a rulemaking on Secure Flight, final comments were due by Nov. 21. ACI-NA continues to be involved trying to shape the implementation of the APIS regulation and to formulate Secure Flight program. The successful implementation of APIS and Secure Flight will hinge on consistent, reliable and split-second response times from the government agencies responsible for vetting passenger data. Skepticism about whether DHS can deliver such performance has raised concerns that passengers will be delayed, airlines will reconsider their schedules and ultimately, the security and efficiency of airport operations will suffer. The original APIS is a widely used electronic data interchange system approved by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). CBP currently requires that airlines flying to the United States submit traveler data within 15 minutes of flight departure. The final rule requires all data prior to flight departure. The APIS data is vetted by CBP against government watch lists to determine whether a passenger will be allowed to board the aircraft. Even though the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) will take over this function for international flights as part of Secure Flight, CBP will continue to require that the airlines transmit the APIS data to support its traditional customs, immigration and border security functions. APIS Rules Airports Council InternationalNorth America (ACI-NA), the Air Transport Association (ATA) and the International Air Transport Association (IATA) support the intent of APIS. “There are a lot of things we like about APIS. The no-fly matching—the airlines like this,” says IATA in its filing. “A pre-departure [APIS] would enhance security by barring high-risk SUCCESSFUL implementation of APIS and Secure Flight will hinge on consistent, reliable and split-second response times from the government agencies responsible for vetting passenger data. Implementation of APIS will require precise passenger vetting to avoid increased congestion in lobbies and gate areas. 10 CENTERLINES | JANUARY 2008

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Centerlines - January 2008

Contents President’s Message Canadian Airports Associates’ Corner Policy Center Regulatory Front On the Hill and On the Stump One on One: Dave Barger Revenue: The Concessions Awards Environment: O’Hare Expansion Passenger Focus: Houston Friendly Safety and Security: After Comair, What Next? Air Service Recruiting: Charleston’s Acquisition of AirTran On Management: Performance Benchmarking at DFW Now Underway Grand Opening Conference Previews and Reviews New Members Index of Advertisers/Advertiser.com Box Scores

Centerlines - January 2008

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