SITA has been enabling Governments to accurately identify potential risks as early as possible in the border management process combining passenger data risk assessment and sophisticated tools for processing passengers at the border and for managing nations’ border operations.
Can you shed some light on the iBorders Border Management solution and the project with the Indian Government?
SITA’s iBorders Advanced Solution is an integrated solution that provides governments with a complete set of capabilities to modernize border security through information, intelligence, optimized interactions with travelers and comprehensive insights to enhance every aspect of border operations.
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“SITA is working closely with the Indian Government to support the IT roadmap towards secure and efficient borders along with the safety of Indian skies. As a part of the airport Solutions, SITA has also implemented border control gates at the arrival of Mumbai Airport.”
Maneesh Jaikrishna
Vice President Indian Subcontinent
Eastern & Southern Africa
SITA
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iBorders Advanced Solution is capable of transforming border operations and improving the passenger experience. It ensures that the government agencies always have the right information at the right time to make better-informed decisions. These solutions allow governments to know who is coming in and leaving the country through the airports at any point in time. Governments can therefore accurately identify potential risks as early as possible in the border management process – at the point of departure — while ensuring passengers can be facilitated through the airports quickly.
SITA is working closely with the Indian Government to support the IT roadmap towards secure and efficient borders along with the safety of Indian skies. Being the global leader in border management solutions, SITA combines passenger data risk assessment and sophisticated tools for processing passengers at the border and for managing nations’ border operations. As a part of the airport Solutions, SITA has also implemented border control gates at the arrival of Mumbai Airport.
Which all stakeholders are involved in this project? Does SITA have similar successful projects deployed in other countries?
SITA facilitates airline-to-government interactions and works closely with the Bureau of Immigration to centralize advance passenger information system (APIS) data delivery. As a pioneer in ICT for aviation, SITA has supported the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in enabling airlines to comply with MHA’s 2008 mandate for outbound APIS.
SITA’s border solutions are used by more than 30 governments around the world. This year, three international Mexican airports viz Mexico City, Cancun and Los Cabos — installed 100 new kiosks that use biometric technology to capture fingerprints to potentially verify the identities of the 8 million arrivals anticipated in the first year of their operation. These kiosks are part of SITA’s iBorders Border Management integrated solution that has been developed to improve the efficiency of borders by targeting resources at higher-risk travelers while speeding up processing for the low-risk majority. These automated border control kiosks, provided by SITA, can securely identify Mexican citizens entering the country and those non-citizens who do not require a visa for entry. The passengers are only required to have their fingers scanned and once their identities are verified against the database of the National Institute of Immigration, they are granted clearance to enter the country.
It has been reported by SITA that this process can potentially reduce the time passengers spend in line by 40% based on its experience in other countries. Similar self-service kiosks have already been used by the U.S., Canada and visa-waiver countries entering the United States to complete their customs declaration forms on touch-screens as well as have their passports read and their fingerprints and facial images captured. SITA also provided its iBorders border management solutions and services to countries like Argentina, Australia, India, Indonesia, Italy, Mexico, New Zealand, Oman, South Africa, Singapore, Spain and United Kingdom.
What are the core technologies around which the Border Management Solution is built?
SITA iBorders Border Management transforms border operations and improves the passenger experience through its solutions such as Automatic Border Control (e-Gates), Advance Passenger Processing System (APP) and Innovative border management capabilities. The solution provides efficiency and improves passenger security at the airportsby identifying various risk patterns.
iBorders is supported by SITA Global Services (SGS) which provides global business continuity through a flexible service model. Our monitoring service ensures IT systems are reliable and available, around the clock, around the world. Our experts proactively monitor infrastructure, identifying and resolving problems often before they impact services. SITA’s passenger processing capabilities also include AirportConnect with common-use technologies, and iBorders with automated border control gates, automated passport control kiosks on arrival, and integration with government immigration systems.
What does this mean for the Indian aviation sector? State the benefits to the industry on completion of the project?
Indian aviation space is growing a rapid speed and is adapting to the breakthroughs in ICT for aviation today. The combination of various factors like increased passenger growth and expectations of an enhanced passenger journey, airport expansions, plus the continued need for efficient border management and security, cost savings and new revenue opportunities, add up to a huge potential for innovation in India’s aviation sector.
What other major technological transformations do you see the Indian aviation industry undergoing in the next decade?
SITA is addressing key industry challenges through a comprehensive suite of ICT solutions tailor made for aviation industry.
With several government schemes such as DigiYatra on the rise, Biometrics is key to a truly walkthrough experience at the airport in a seamless and secured manner. Identity management falls under the advanced processing technology part of the New Experience in Travel and Technologies (NEXXT) program which is an initiative by IATA and ACI.As passenger acceptance of biometric recognition grows, biometric solutions are set to simplify and speed up ID checks at other stages in the airport journey such as airport entry. Biometric identity could also be extended to automate entry into airline clubs or for baggage check-in.
We, at SITA, are strongly focused on our Smart Path solution, which can empower a passenger to complete various steps during their journey through airport by using just their face as identity.
Airlines and airports are also anxious to increase visibility of their real-time baggage handling operations while looking at improving their passengers’ experience by offering baggage tracking via mobile devices. With the IATA Resolution 753 coming into effect from June 1, 2018, the industry is set to increase baggage tracking. Technologies such as SITA BagJourney is a fully managed end-to-end baggage tracking platform with fast and simple integration into mobile and web applications and it complies with the Resolution 753 and helps in preventing mishandling of baggage.
