Air Rage Detectors - In-flight Surveillance

CCTV cameras could one day be installed on airplanes to combat air rage and detect terrorists on aircrafts. The European Union’s Security of Aircraft in the Future European Environment (SAFEE) has developed a prototype system which uses several cameras and behaviour analysing software. The researchers who developed it reported the system was successful in detecting simulated threatening situations in an Airbus A380 fuselage.

The system relies on cameras mounted in every passenger seat and wide angle cameras for monitoring the aisles. The software monitors movement and analyses the footage for risky behaviour like running, standing too long close to the cockpit, combinations of other behaviours such as nervous touching of face and excessive sweating and so on - not all of which was revealed by the researchers.  Further extensive testing of the system would be required before it can be considered reliable in the real-life scenario of a crowded plane where the crew and passengers can block the cameras as they move around.