The next time you fly in and out of Los Angeles International Airport, you might have your temperature taken by thermal cameras.
Airport officials and L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti announced Monday that thermal cameras that could check passengers' body temperatures have been placed throughout the Tom Bradley International Terminal and other arrival areas at LAX. If the cameras register anyone with a body temperature of 100.4 or higher, airport staff will request a secondary screening of the passenger, who could be referred to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for instructions on quarantining themselves.
“This is a voluntary program with signage alerting passengers where the pilot will take place,'' Garcetti said. “To be clear, these thermal camera temperature checks will not replace other safety measures. We're not saying that you only can rely on this. This is an additional layer of safety.''
The cameras being used by the Terminal Wellness pilot program are being provided by Carlyle Airport Group at no cost to LAX .
“We know it's incumbent upon us to make the public comfortable, with the idea of traveling once again to help boost passenger traffic numbers and to rev up the giant economic engine that is Southern California,'' said Sean Burton, president of the Los Angeles Airport Commission.
The thermal cameras are the latest addition to LAX as airport officials do their best to help curb the spread of the virus, COVID-19 at airports since the beginning of the pandemic. Airport staffers have also installed hundreds of hand sanitizer stations and conducted deep cleanings of the airport with a particular focus on high-traffic areas, including elevators and doors.
Los Angeles World Airports CEO Justin Erbacci says the goal of the Terminal Wellness pilot program will be to determine what technology is best used for temperature checks at major airports like LAX as well as create protocols that can be replicated at other terminals across the United States.