U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers working at the Paso Del Norte (PDN) international crossing in El Paso have initiated work on a system which will result in more efficient processing of arriving pedestrian traffic. The pilot project uses biometric data (fingerprints) to expedite the pedestrian entry process. It is expected to launch later this year.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) unveiled its first mock-up of its idea of the futuristic security checkpoint to delegates at its 67th Annual General Meeting and World Transport Summit in Singapore. The checkpoint, said the organization, is designed to enhance security while reducing queues and intrusive searches at airports, with intelligence-driven risk-based measures.

“CBP’s Trusted Traveler Programs support one of our core missions, to facilitate trade and travel by expediting low-risk, frequent travelers’ entry process into the U.S. when arriving at our ports of entry,” said CBP Commissioner Alan D. Bersin. “We encourage frequent travelers to join the one million members and apply to the Trusted Traveler Program that will best match their travel needs.”

The US Navy has completed deals to spend more than $1.7 billion on the first six low-rate initial production (LRIP) copies of the Boeing P-8A Poseidon patrol aircraft.

RTR specializes in the development and use of simulation tools applied to the study of operations research problems in everyday life.  One example of the application of such techniques may be familiar to many people, Walt Disney World’s attempt to reduce wait times during visits to their many theme parks.  Disney’s engineers can examine all aspects of enjoying each attraction, from the number of staff, to the time it takes to load and unload visitors, and to the subjective experience of waiting in lines when they are unavoidable.  RTR’s engineers and researchers apply the same tools and techniques to analyze the challenges of U.S. border logistics and possible solutions, while maintaining security and the highest possible level of customer service.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Deputy Secretary Jane Holl Lute today joined Dutch Security and Justice Minister Ivo Opstelten to sign a Preventing and Combating Serious Crime (PCSC) Agreement—allowing for the exchange of biometric and biographic data between the United States and the Netherlands to bolster counterterrorism and law enforcement efforts while protecting individual privacy.

Tom Patterson, a participant in the Pacifica games, describes what DOD can learn

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Director John Morton today announced record-breaking immigration enforcement statistics achieved under the Obama administration—including unprecedented numbers of convicted criminal alien removals and overall alien removals in fiscal year 2010.

This morning the President signed the Southwest Border Security Bill in the Oval Office.  The President issued a statement yesterday after it was passed in Congress explaining that this has been focus of his Administration from the very beginning:

Trademark and copyright holders can now provide U.S. Customs and Border Protection their product identification guides electronically for used by CBP frontline personnel to identify counterfeit goods and prevent them from entering the United States.