McCarran International installs next-gen automated passport control kiosks

Las Vegas McCarran International Airport introduces SITA’s Phase 4.0 automated passport control (APC) kiosks to accelerate the custom and border process.

McCarran International is the first to action SITA’s Phase 4.0 APC kiosk. The new system is designed to speed up the customs and border process for international travellers allowing business or tourist visa holders, Mexican passengers with border crossing cards, and airline crew members to use the kiosks upon arrival in the U.S.

McCarran first deployed SITA’s APC Kiosks in March 2015 allowing passengers to provide their travel document, biometric data and customs declaration prior to speaking to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officer. The newly installed Phase 4.0 system will increase eligibility from the previously established 38 “visa waiver” countries outlined by Customs and Border Protection to virtually all of McCarran’s international arrivals.

Rosemary Vassiliadis, Clark County Director of Aviation, commented: “McCarran welcomed nearly 43 million travellers in 2014 – the most since 2008 – with much of that growth coming from outside the U.S.  We expect the volume of international travel will continue to rise, and offering the speed and convenience of SITA’s APC self-service kiosks for passport processing to a greater number of travellers will allow us to accommodate that growth while continuing to deliver an exceptional guest experience.”

Paul Houghton, SITA President, Americas, said: “SITA is helping airports worldwide deliver an end-to-end, hassle-free and secure passenger journey.  Whether at check-in or upon arrival, automating routine and often time-consuming processes like passport control has proven to significantly cut wait times, enabling airports to improve operational efficiency and passenger satisfaction. In the U.S. our automated passport control kiosks have reduced wait times for passengers by as much as 40 percent.”

With annual growth rates for international visitors to the U.S. expected to rise 6 percent by 2019, there is a growing need to provide efficient and secure border processing.  It is hoped the latest system will allow passengers from countries with the largest total growth percentages – including China, Columbia, India, Brazil and Mexico – to process themselves through the kiosks.