Shanghai Customs are trialing modified security checks at the city's two airports in a bid save passengers' time and make customs clearance more efficient.

Customs said the new method is in useat Terminal 1 atHongqiaoin June and Terminal 2 at Pudong in August as a trial.

The luggage goes through machine security checks before being collected.

Suitcases suspected of illegal content will be attached with a customs mark and a speciallock to receive further checks.

By Monday, officers atHongqiaohad given early machine checks to more than 330,000 pieces of luggage from 2,002 flights, while at Pudong customs checked some 206,000 pieces from 1,415 flights.

During the trial, the customs clearance time for one flight had been cut from 40 minutes to just 15, raising efficiency by over 60 percent.

“The early machine checks are important practices of customs intelligent supervision and innovation, which combines the supervision with customs clearance services,” said a customs official. “It raises the supervision efficiency and provides great convenience to most passengers who obey the laws.”

Hongqiao airport customs uncovered its largest rhinoceros horn smuggling case during the trial. Officers seized 30 pieces of rhinoceros horn and products weighing nearly 10 kilograms. The value exceeded 2.4 million yuan (US$336,530).

A customs officer checks airline passengers' luggage after its arrival in Shanghai.

Customs officers check airline passengers' luggage before it iscollected.

An officer attaches a customs lock to a suitcase suspected of having illegal items inside.

A xustoms officer at Hongqiao airport examines one of 30 seized pieces of rhinoceros horn and products, weighing nearly 10 kilograms.,