KADENA AIR BASE, OKINAWA, Japan -- Kadena Air Base recently released that all active-duty service members, family members, Master Labor Contractors, Indirect Hire Employees, local national contractors and retirees are required to register with the Defense Biometric Identification System in order to access the air base.
Personnel attempting to access the air base can expect their identification card to be scanned upon entering the gate beginning as early as November. Gate guards can and may send personnel to the Pass and Registration Office to be registered with DBIDS if they have not already done so, said Air Force Master Sgt. Peter L. Housh, noncommissioned officer-in-charge at the Kadena Pass and Registration Office 18th Security Forces Squadron.
“Personnel need to bring their identification cards to the Pass and Registration office to be registered,” Housh said. “We then will scan the ID card, update any information if needed, finger print them and take a photo and then they are successfully uploaded into the system.”
DBIDS is a new Air Force-wide system being used to enhance security on the base.
“The process only takes about five minutes per person,” said Airman 1st Class Cherish Byers, a pass registration clerk at the Kadena Pass and Registration Office, 18th Security Force Squadron.
All MLC, Indirect Hire Employees and local national contractors with U.S. Forces Japan 98EJ identification on island who are authorized access to Kadena will have to bring their ID card to the visitor center at Gate 1 and be reissued an ID card that is DBIDS compatible, said Housh.
Upon entering the installation, identification cards will be scanned by the gate guard. DBIDS has the ability to digitally recognize biometric details including a photograph, height, weight, and fingerprints to name a few. DBIDS also has the capability to detect and alert the gate guards of lost or stolen ID cards, outdated personal information and changes to base access, explained Housh.
Housh says that about 25,000 IDs have already been registered, but there are still thousands that need to be entered into the system. He recommends coming to the office as soon as possible rather than closer to the deadline when the office is expected to be busy.
Individuals can register their IDs at the Pass and Registration Office located at Kadena Gate 1 from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. weekdays or at the Kadena Keystone Theater from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays.