US wants more access to airline passenger data

WASHINGTON, Aug 29: The United States needs broader access to information about passengers boarding trans-Atlantic flights that is being restricted by European privacy concerns, US Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff wrote today in The Washington Post.

Chertoff said despite close cooperation with European partners in the fight against terrorism, they were ''handcuffed'' in their ability to use all available resources to identify and stop threats.

Chertoff wants counterterrorism officials to have access to detailed information routinely collected by airlines and travel agencies when travelers book flights.

''If we learned anything from September 11, 2001, it is that we need to be better at connecting the dots of terrorist-related information,'' Chertoff wrote in the opinion piece.

''After September 11, we used credit card and telephone records to identify those linked with the hijackers. But wouldn't it be better to identify such connections before a hijacker boards a plane?'' Chertoff said.

Homeland Security officials already screen passenger lists, but Chertoff argued that more information, such as travel itineraries and payment details, could help identify suspected terrorists before they board planes.

The European Union's highest court in May struck down an agreement with Washington that allowed airlines to provide names, addresses, fare payment details and telephone numbers to US authorities.

EU officials are working to draft a new regulation before the September 30 deadline set by the court for the agreement to expire.

Chertoff said information sharing was a critical way governments could work together to defeat terrorists.

''Protecting personal privacy is a part of responding to the post-September 11 world, but it should not reflexively block us from developing new screening tools,'' he said.

''Indeed, more data sharing leads to more precisely targeted screening, which actually improves privacy by reducing questioning and searches of innocent travelers.''

REUTERS