MODELING AIRPORT SECURITY CHECKPOINTS

G. Kelly Leone
Computer Scientist
FAA Aviation Security Research and Development Division
Atlantic City, NJ

Abstract
As the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) looks to the future of civil aviation security in the United States, it is clear that a number of significant changes lie ahead. Driven by high visibility events such as the bombing in 1988 of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland, and the explosion in 1996 of TWA Flight 800 off Long Island, New York, national attention has demanded a focus on the ability of US airports to defeat terrorist threats. In response, the FAA has pursued an aggressive program to develop, certify, and deploy advanced security equipment at airports throughout the US. These efforts have resulted in numerous advancements in the civil aviation security landscape, including the deployment of automated bulk-explosives detection units, explosives trace detection units, advanced x-ray systems, and more. To effectively plan for and manage security technology development and integration, the FAA is increasingly looking towards computer simulation modeling. Figure 1 is a snapshot from one of the models that the FAA is using to study the impact that new security equipment, policies, and procedures have on airport security checkpoint operations.

The checkpoint model, which was created using AutoMod, considers the flow of passengers and their carry-on baggage through a security checkpoint. The virtual checkpoint is based on a typical US airport security checkpoint configuration, which includes three walk-through metal detectors (two primary, one secondary), two x-ray machines, an explosives trace detection machine, a hand wand procedure, and a hand search procedure. This paper illustrates key aspects of the checkpoint simulation, including descriptions of the model development process, successes in using AutoMod for airport processes, challenges encountered in using AutoMod outside of its traditional material-handling domain, and other areas where AutoMod has been used under the topic of aviation security.