U.S. Approves SITA's System for Transmitting Passenger Security Data

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has approved SITA's method of transmitting security data at check-in that can save time and prevent passenger inconvenience.

APIS AQQ (advance passenger information quick query) service will allow the DHS to check passenger names against its terrorist watch list, prior to departure, and automatically deliver permission to the airline to issue a boarding pass.

Since February 19^th, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) branch of the DHS has required that all airlines with international flights that depart from, over-fly, or fly to the U.S., provide it with passenger and crew passport and travel document information 30 minutes before departure.  This rule affects more than 180 airlines and 150 million passenger movements, according to SITA.

AQQ is a form of iAPI (interactive advance passenger information) that was first implemented by SITA for Australia in the late 1990s, followed by Bahrain, Kuwait and New Zealand.

SITA says it the only supplier offering an off-the shelf iAPI solution, called APP (advance passenger processing), to governments and airlines worldwide, through a single-interface "industry hub".  Over half the world's airlines are now APP-capable.  02-29-2008.

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