TRANSPORTATION INSIGHTS | 7

SUMMARY OF AN ACRP INSIGHT EVENT
January 14–15, 2025 | Washington, DC

Modernization of Federal Inspection Services Facilities at U.S. Airports

Solomon Wong, Rapporteur
InterVISTAS Consulting

Organized by the Airport Cooperative Research Program

Sponsored by the Federal Aviation Administration

ACRP Project 11-08(24-01)
ISBN 978-0-309-60106-1

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NOTICE

This summary was reviewed by the technical panel and accepted for publication according to procedures established and overseen by the Transportation Research Board (TRB) and approved by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

This event was organized through TRB’s Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) and sponsored by the Federal Aviation Administration. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed or implied in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization or agency that provided support for the project.

Suggested citation: Transportation Research Board. Transportation Insights 7: Modernization of Federal Inspection Services Facilities at U.S. Airports. Summary of an ACRP Insight Event, January 14–15, 2025. Washington, DC: The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, 2025.

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ACRP Insight Event Project Panel

Angel Ramos, City of Brownsville, Texas, Chair

AmyClaire Brusch, Airports Council International–North America, Washington, DC

Donald Harper, Federal Aviation Administration

Ana Hoover, Delta Air Lines

Barbara Kostuk, Airlines for America

Justin Lowe, Port of Seattle, Seattle–Tacoma International Airport

Jessica Marin-Urrea, Miami-Dade Aviation Department

Kimberly Mills, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (retired)

Kenneth Stevens, University of Westminster

Lawrence Studdiford, Studdiford Technical Solutions, LLC

Transportation Research Board Staff

Marci A. Greenberger, Manager, Airport Cooperative Research Program

Joseph D. Navarrete, Senior Program Officer (retired)

Stephanie L. Campbell-Chamberlain, Senior Program Assistant

Publications Staff for Transportation Insights

Natalie Barnes, Director of Publications

Mark Ingebretsen, Editor

Jennifer J. Weeks, Publishing Projects Manager

ACRP OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE*

CHAIR

Marianne Csaky

LanzaJet

VICE CHAIR

Cathryn Stephens

Eugene Airport

MEMBERS

Clara Bennett

Boca Raton Airport Authority

Melissa Cooper

Kansas City Aviation Department

Darryl Daniels

Jacobsen Daniels Associates

Kimberly A. Kenville

University of North Dakota

Lance Lyttle

Seattle-Tacoma International Airport

Chad Makovsky

City of Phoenix (Arizona)

Ramon Ricondo

Ricondo and Associates, Inc.

Atif Saeed

Philadelphia International Airport

Jesus H. Saenz, Jr.

San Antonio Airport System

Jessica Sypniewski

Federal Aviation Administration

EX OFFICIO MEMBERS

Justin Barkowski

American Association of Airport Executives

[Vacant]

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Laura Rinaldi McKee

Airlines for America

Christopher J. Oswald

Airports Council International–North America

Gregory Pecoraro

National Association of State Aviation Officials

T.J. Schulz

Airport Consultants Council

Victoria Sheehan

Transportation Research Board

SECRETARY

Monique R. Evans

Transportation Research Board

TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH BOARD 2025 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE*

OFFICERS

CHAIR: Leslie S. Richards, Professor of Practice, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia

VICE CHAIR: Joel M. Jundt, Secretary of Transportation, South Dakota Department of Transportation, Pierre

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: Victoria Sheehan, Transportation Research Board, Washington, DC

MEMBERS

James F. Albaugh, President and CEO, The Boeing Company (retired), Scottsdale, AZ

Carlos M. Braceras, Executive Director, Utah Department of Transportation, Salt Lake City

Douglas C. Ceva, Vice President, Customer Lead Solutions, Prologis, Inc., Jupiter, FL

Nancy Daubenberger, Commissioner of Transportation, Minnesota Department of Transportation, St. Paul

Marie Therese Dominguez, Commissioner, New York State Department of Transportation, Albany

Garrett Eucalitto, Commissioner, Connecticut Department of Transportation, Newington

Andrew Fremier, Executive Director, Metropolitan Transportation Commission, San Francisco, CA

Martha Grabowski, Professor Emerita, Information Systems, Le Moyne College, Madden College of Business and Economics, Cazenovia, NY

Randell Iwasaki, President and CEO, Iwasaki Consulting Services, Walnut Creek, CA

Carol A. Lewis, Professor, Transportation Studies, Texas Southern University, Houston

Scott C. Marler, Director, Iowa Department of Transportation, Ames

Ricardo Martinez, Adjunct Professor of Emergency Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Decatur, GA

Russell McMurry, Commissioner, Georgia Department of Transportation, Atlanta

Craig E. Philip, Research Professor and Director, VECTOR, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN

Steward T.A. Pickett, Distinguished Senior Scientist, Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, Millbrook, NY

Susan A. Shaheen, Professor and Co-Director, Transportation Sustainability Research Center, University of California, Berkeley

Marc Williams, Executive Director, Texas Department of Transportation, Austin

EX OFFICIO MEMBERS

Derek Barrs, Administrator, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Washington, DC

Bryan Bedford, Administrator, Federal Aviation Administration, Washington, DC

Michael R. Berube, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Sustainable Transportation, U.S. Department of Energy, Washington, DC

Steven G. Bradbury, Deputy Secretary, U.S. Department of Transportation, Washington, DC

Steven Cliff, Executive Officer, California Air Resources Board, Sacramento

Drew Feeley, Acting Administrator, Federal Railroad Administration, Washington, DC

David Fink, Administrator, Federal Railroad Administration, Washington, DC

LeRoy Gishi, Chief, Division of Transportation, Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior, Germantown, MD

Firas Ibrahim, Director, Office of Research, Development, and Technology, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology (OST-R), Washington, DC

Jason Kelly, Deputy Commanding General for Civil Works and Emergency Operations, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Washington, DC

Sandra Knight, President, WaterWonks, LLC, Washington, DC

Sean McMaster, Administrator, Federal Highway Administration, Washington, DC

Marcus J. Molinaro, Administrator, Federal Transit Administration, Washington, DC

Jonathan Morrison, Administrator, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Washington, DC

Niloo Parvinashtiani, Engineer, Mobility Consultant Solutions, Iteris Inc., Fairfax, VA, and Chair, TRB Young Participants Council

Paul Roberti, Administrator, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, Washington, DC

Karl Simon, Director, Transportation and Climate Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC

Paul P. Skoutelas, President and CEO, American Public Transportation Association, Washington, DC

Jim Tymon, Executive Director, American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, Washington, DC

Sang Yi, Acting Administrator, U.S. Maritime Administration, Washington, DC

___________________

^* Membership as of November 2025.

^* Membership as of November 2025.

Contents

Preface

Acronyms

Introduction

Opening Remarks

Ellen McClain, Monique Evans, Solomon Wong

Panel Discussion

Session 1: Context for International Travel

Matt Cornelius, Moderator, Roger Schaufele, John Heimlich, David Huether

Session 2: Context for CBP Modernization

Solomon Wong, John Wagner

Breakout Sessions

Overview of Participants and Breakout Sessions

Solomon Wong, Moderator, Jennie Santoro, Justin Lowe, Lawrence Studdiford, John Wagner

Breakout Session A

Jennie Santoro, Moderator, Justin Lowe, Lawrence Studdiford, John Wagner

Breakout Session B

Justin Lowe, Moderator, Jennie Santoro, Lawrence Studdiford, John Wagner

Breakout Session C

Lawrence Studdiford, Moderator, Jennie Santoro, Justin Lowe, John Wagner

Breakout Session D

John Wagner, Justin Lowe, Lawrence Studdiford

Rapporteur Summary of Day 1

Solomon Wong

Day 1 Evening Remarks

Laura Dawson

Day 2 Journey Mapping

Ellen McClain, Solomon Wong

FIS 2050 Sessions

Part 1: Before Flight Departures

AmyClaire Brusch, Moderator

Part 2: Arrivals to the United States

Ellen McClain, Moderator

Part 3: Baggage and Connectivity

Lawrence Studdiford, Moderator

Rapporteur Summary of Day 2

Solomon Wong

Closing Remarks

Marci A. Greenberger

Appendix A: Insight Event Registrants

Appendix B: Program Agenda

Preface

“Modernization of Federal Inspection Services Facilities at International Airports” [ACRP Project 11-08(24-01)], held January 14–15, 2025, at the Keck Center of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Washington, DC, brought together practitioners from airports and airlines, consultants, planners, government affiliates, and other subject matter experts to discuss modernizing Federal Inspection Services (FIS) facilities at airports. The Transportation Research Board’s (TRB’s) Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) organized this Insight Event, which explored forward-looking concepts for how FIS facilities might evolve by 2050. ACRP convenes Insight Events to provide a forum for dialogue and collaboration among professionals across sectors and industries on emerging topics of significance to airport operators.

ACRP is an industry-driven, applied research program that develops near-term, practical solutions to problems faced by airport operators. ACRP is managed by TRB, a part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, and is sponsored by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). ACRP Insight Events are forums that foster dialogue among professionals across sectors, institutions, and industries. ACRP Insight Events convene airport industry leaders and subject matter experts in various fields to encourage discussion and promote broader and deeper insight into topics of significance to airport operators. These in-depth, face-to-face gatherings are designed to promote communication and collaboration, foster innovation, and help identify areas of future interest and research, especially for topics of emerging importance.

This Insight Event summary, prepared by rapporteur Solomon Wong of InterVISTAS Consulting, is a compilation of the presentations and a factual summary of the ensuing discussions at the event. The project panel for the Insight Event was responsible for organizing the event. Additional support was provided by the InterVISTAS Consulting team and by Baldwin Liaison Consulting, LLC. The views contained in this summary are those of individual Insight Event participants and do not necessarily represent the views of all participants, the project panel, TRB, or the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

This document was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. The purposes of this independent review are to provide candid and critical comments that will assist TRB in making the published summary as sound as possible and to ensure that the document meets institutional requirements for clarity, objectivity, and responsiveness to the project charge. The

review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the process.

TRB thanks the following individuals for their review of the summary: Justin Lowe, Port of Seattle, Seattle–Tacoma International Airport; Hans Miller, VFR Concepts, LLC; and Courtney Moore, Los Angeles World Airports. Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they did not see the final draft of the summary before its release. Responsibility for the final content of this summary rests entirely with the rapporteur and the institution. The project panel thanks Solomon Wong for his work in preparing this summary.

The full Insight Event agenda is provided in Appendix B. Presentations from the event are available on the Insight Event web page at https://trb.org/ACRP/ACRPInsightEventFIS.aspx.

Acronyms