The US Transport Security Administration (TSA) has proposed a one-stop security arrangement with India to expedite flow of passengers to their destinations by phasing out rescreening of passengers at transit hubs.

The idea was mooted by US Transport Security Administrator David Pekoske at the US-India aviation summit in Washington DC on Tuesday.

Now, for instance, passengers travelling from Delhi to Houston via New York have to undergo a security check on arrival before taking the domestic connection in the US. The one-stop arrangement will do away with the need for that check.

“If we have a one-stop agreement with the government of India and with Delhi airport, then we would not need to re-screen these passengers and their check bags would go from aircraft to aircraft in almost every situation,” Pekoske said in his address at the summit.

“This is a really powerful concept. It offers a number of important benefits. It means flights inbound to the United States are more secure. If there is a reverse agreement between the United States and India where US screening satisfies Indian requirements and that means flights to India would also be more secure,” he added.

Cost reduction

Such a framework would lead to reduction of security costs through better allocation of resources and reduce flight connection times, he said.

A similar suggestion for a one-stop security framework between the European Union and India was made by Airports Council International last year. Europe has a one stop security agreement with Singapore and such an arrangement with India would smoothen the transit process for Indian passengers too.

Along with a one-stop security arrangement, Pekoske also proposed deputing a TSA representative in Delhi and an agreement with India to share sensitive security information.

“India’s intent to grow transportation capacity creates real opportunity for India and the United States to partner and to harmonise. The effort is to harmonise standards for aviation security,” Pekoske said.

Over 6.5 million passengers flew between India and the US in 2023, a growth of over 15 per cent on a year-on-year basis. Infact, the traffic between India and the US has crossed pre-pandemic period. In 2019, over 6.2 million had flown between the two countries.

Currently there are non-stop flights from three Indian cities to five US destinations (New York, Newark, Chicago, Washington DC and San Francisco). Delhi - New York, Delhi - San Francisco and Mumbai - New York were the busiest routes in 2023.

However non-stop traffic between India and the US constitutes only 20-25 per cent of the total volume. Emirates, Air India, Qatar Airways, Etihad and United are the top carriers serving India-US routes.

Grant for Hisar airport

On Tuesday, the US Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) also announced $1.25 million technical assistance grant for development of integrated aviation hub at Hisar in Haryana State.

“Our work will help develop airport cargo and logistics infrastructure that will help develop India’s supply chain network. Our partner for this activity will be Haryana Airports Development Corporation and our assistance will include capacity building so that they can oversee the implementation of the integrated aviation hub,” USTDA director Enoh T. Ebong said.