STAR System

Friday, Nov 1, 2024 | 2 minute read | Updated at Friday, Nov 1, 2024

Pepsi

How the STAR system works.

For the purpose of the project, a scoring system from 1 to 20 was used to evaluate each technology. The acronym “STAR” was used, which stands for:

• Security
• Throughput
• Accuracy
• Readiness

Security

This measures how effectively the system prevents high-impact, high-frequency problems. For example, bomb threats.

Throughput

This is an assessment of whether the technology presents a significant bottleneck to the speed at which flight crew are able to pass through checkpoints.

The main purpose of this metric was based on the fact that most KCM systems exist for the purpose of expediting airside crew through security screenings. As such, a system which takes the same amount of time for a screening has minimal purpose.

Throughput was evaluated in low and high traffic scenarios where possible.

Accuracy

This is a metric of how the system handles type 1 and 2 errors. The main errors considered were:

• Type 1: an unauthorised person passes through a checkpoint without approval
• Type 2: an authorised person is unable to get through

This was evaluated by the likelihood of each case. Given that airport security heavily tends towards stopping type 1 errors, this was also reflected in the scoring.

Response

This is a metric which covers both type 1 and high-frequency high-impact errors. It focuses more on the surrounding infrastructure than the technology itself.