April 02, 2008	Wednesday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 24, 1429

SYDNEY, April 1: A new security scanner that sees through passengers’ clothes will be tested at Australia’s Melbourne airport, the national carrier Qantas announced Tuesday.

The airline intends to introduce the device, which uses millimetre waves to scan the body, “at selected Qantas screening points in the not too distant future,” Qantas security manager Geoffrey Askew said in a statement.

The test at Melbourne’s domestic terminal this week is aimed at assessing the public’s response to the new security system. “Passengers are invited to view and test the equipment on a voluntary basis in order for Qantas to gain customer feedback on this new technology,” Askew said. Passengers would walk into the unit and stand in a designated spot for three seconds with arms raised.

“The millimetre waves used to generate the individual’s image are not invasive or harmful. The image created simply resembles an outline of the person and indicates the position of any foreign object.

“The face is unrecognisable and sensitive areas of the body are blurred. The security operative is the only person with access to the image and that person is located away from the screening location,” he said.

—AFP