First came fingerprinting on the way into America. Now comes fingerprinting on
the way out. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has sparked fresh
outrage by ordering airlines and cruise lines to collect the digital
fingerprints of all foreigners before they leave the country. Critics have
warned that the new security initiative will lead to worldwide airline chaos.
More than 33m travellers will be fingerprinted annually as part of the
“air-exit program”, and DHS chief Michael Chertoff says he is just doing his
job. “The 9/11 Commission called for biometric entry and exit records,
because biometrics confirm that travellers are who they say they are and
that the purpose of their travel is as they claim it to be,” he said,
arguing that objections to the ruling were based on commercial concerns.
The International Air Transport Association (Iata), which represents the
airlines, says otherwise, warning that fingerprinting every departing
passenger - at check-in, at airside kiosks or at departure gates - will lead
to “delayed departures and missed connections around the world”.
“It’s incredibly ill-conceived,” said Paul Charles, of Virgin Atlantic. “Our
check-in staff aren’t immigration officers, and they’re not trained to
decide whether or not someone should be allowed to leave the country. The
scheme is going to cause horrendous delays, but if the US government wants
American airports to become like Terminal 5, this will do it.”
This newspaper receives a weekly mailbag from readers complaining about their
treatment at American borders. “Getting into America is bad enough, but
getting out is even worse,” said Mark Selby, a screenwriter. “Last week, I
queued for three hours to get out of LA. How much more time will I have to
allow when they’ve got to fingerprint everybody as well?”
There is some hope. As a political appointee, Chertoff may find that his
tenure ends with the arrival of the new American administration in January -
but not before he sets up yet another hurdle to crossing the pond. From this
autumn, anyone visiting America will be obliged to seek an online pretravel
authorisation at least 48 hours prior to departure.
Last week, the US government reassured the EU that the new system did not
amount to a new visa and would merely replace the current forms that those
travelling under the visa-waiver programme have to fill out when they arrive
in the USA.
This will be interesting I wonder how they will manage passengers transiting the US in a matter of couple of hours ? Will they fingerprint everyone in and 2 hours later fingerprint out when all the passengers are doing is passing through not necessarily out of choice eg London/New Zealand via LA
Paul, London, UK