Chennai airport will soon start using body scanners

Equipment will speed up and enhance security checks in domestic and international terminals.

Soon, Chennai airport will be equipped with 19 body scanners in its domestic and international terminals and are set to replace conventional door frame and handheld metal detectors in the coming months.

Airports Authority of India (AAI) officials said 10 scanners would be for the domestic terminal while nine would be for the international one.

The main reason for implementing this is to enhance security, officials said. However, passengers would be required to remove all metallic objects in addition to their shoes and belt before using the scanner. Serpentine queues and a long wait time for security checks, especially during peak hours, were the most common complaints raised by passengers.

New routine

While some officials said these scanners would speed up the process, some felt it would be time consuming as each passenger may take time in removing items before entering the scanner.

“People will need to be told what they have to remove only for the first time before entering the scanner. After that, it will be a routine process. We don’t see how this will further delay security checks,” another official said.

Even with the body scanners, a few door frame metal detectors would be kept functional, sources added.