A project funded by the European Union could see travellers placed under close scrutiny while in the air.
Researchers at Reading University are trialling a system intended to identify suspicious behaviour among passengers.
A high-tech computerised network of cameras, microphones, and “sniffer” devices that detect explosives are used in the system, which is designed to spot telltale signs of terrorist activity.
Explosives detectors fitted in on-board lavatories would warn crew if someone attempts to set up a bomb, while cameras and microphones would monitor actions or conversations indicating terrorist activity.
Behaviour deemed unusual by the system includes passengers abandoning their luggage, appearing agitated and going against “crowd flow”.
Dr James Ferryman, leader of the Reading University Computational Vision Group that conducted the trials, claimed the system reliably distinguishes innocent travellers from those posing a genuine threat.
He told The Daily Telegraph: “We want to avoid saying that nervous passengers are potential terrorists.”
Dr Ferryman went on to say that if the technology had been widely available last year it may have assisted in the apprehension of Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, the would-be Christmas Day bomber in Detroit.
