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Saturday, July 22, 1972
MECHANISED BAGGAGE EXAMINATION COUNTERS AT AIRPORT
Mechanised examination counters have been installed in the baggage
reclaim hall at Hong Kong Airport to improve security and to facilitate the
handling of passengers' luggage.
Eighteen counters, costing about $300,000, have already been
installed as part of Stage III of the airport expansion programme, and
22 other counters will be set up when the next stage is completed, a Preventive
Service spokesman said today.
The number and position of counters open at any one time can
be controlled by the officer-in-charge and depend on the number and
direction of passengers to be cleared at the time, he said.
The counters consist of a conveyor belt with static rollers
at each end. The belts are set in motion by the Revenue Inspector
manning it.
The spokesman said passengers had only to put their baggage onto
the conveyor rollers on one end, see it through the inspection, and fasten
the baggage at the other end before leaving the hall.
Two passengers, one at each end of the belt, can thus be handled
at the same time by one inspector. The time taken to clear the baggage
of a passenger averages about 80 seconds.
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