ALEXANDRIA, Va. – July 14 -- A group of airports working in collaboration with the American Association of Airport Executives (AAAE) have joined together to establish common business rules and technical standards to create a permanent, interoperable Registered Traveler (RT) Program which will bring passenger screening consistency and improved security procedures to air travelers in the United States. 

The Registered Traveler Interoperability Consortium will leverage existing airport programs and AAAE’s Transportation Security Clearinghouse network to provide an open, universal system to develop registered traveler solutions that allow airports, airlines and industry partners sufficient flexibility to tailor solutions to their local environment.

“Just as credit cards are accepted once issued at most businesses around the country, if you signed up as a Registered Traveler in Washington, D.C., you ought to be recognized as a Registered Traveler in Minneapolis or any other airport around the country,” said Carter Morris, AAAE Senior Vice President. “The Registered Traveler Interoperability Consortium is a group of airports working together to create a platform that works seamlessly at individual airports around the country and in turn, facilitates Registered Traveler working everywhere.”

A permanent, interoperable Registered Traveler Program has several advantages for government, industry and the traveling public.  In developing these standards, the consortium will focus on six themes: improving security, expediting passenger processing, creating passenger screening consistency, reducing the passenger “hassle factor”, developing a system that can be used nationwide and coordinating with TSA and airline partners.  While the consortium will push for TSA screening benefits and collaboration, a interoperable or seamless system needs to be airport and aviation industry driven and run outside of government.  Most importantly, the consortium members believe that the program needs to move forward operationally without further delay.

An interoperable, nationwide Registered Traveler Program depends on the implementation of a technical, operational, and business model capable of supporting individual airport needs, while providing the common infrastructure that allows passengers to use this capability at any airport nationwide. Working with the current RT providers and TSA while leveraging the technology and identity program expertise of Daon, a leading provider of identity management software, the AAAE Transportation Security Clearinghouse and its partners offer airports and industry partners the capability to implement solutions which will secure and protect their investment in these projects. Providing the assurance and confidence that the potential industry partners have certified their solutions into a common framework is key to supporting a national RT infrastructure.

Airports founding the consortium include Minneapolis St. Paul International Airport, Phoenix Sky Harbor, San Francisco International Airport, Denver International Airport, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority’s Reagan Washington National and Dulles International Airports and the Port Columbus International Airport.

Airports and providers interested in joining the consortium should contact Carter Morris at cmorris@aaae.org .  Membership in the consortium is free to qualified parties.

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