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Dec 24, 02, 1:09 pm
By STEPHEN POWER and RON LIEBER
Staff Reporters of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
It hardly seems the ideal deadline for overhauling the way airline luggage is screened: 11:59 p.m. on New Year's Eve, right in the middle of the busy holiday travel season.
But that's the timetable Congress set out in the major airport-security law it passed last year after the terrorist attacks. As a result, some Christmas travelers will find a different experience coming home after Jan. 1 than when they left in December.
The law requires airports to begin screening all checked baggage for explosives, primarily with newly installed high-tech scanners. The government has supplied more than 300 of the country's 429 airports with bomb-detection equipment. But it's still scrambling to finish the job at the remaining airports, including a number of big hubs that the government won't identify. Airports that aren't ready in time will have to use bomb-sniffing dogs, hand searches and other means to screen bags.
Federal officials say the security effort won't result in multi-hour waits for passengers, but some airlines and airports are bracing for the worst. UAL Corp.'s United Airlines has been polling passengers by e-mail to see whether they would be willing to drop their bags off early or pay to have someone come pick them up the day before a flight.
"I'd definitely advise travelers to come to the airport earlier than usual, but exactly how these delays...are going to manifest themselves, I just can't predict," says Gina Marie Lindsey, director of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, who on Wednesday reluctantly approved a plan to drill holes in the expensive terrazzo floor of her facility to make room for temporary bomb-detection equipment.
The rules will affect the way you pack as well. To speed up the screening process and prevent flight delays, authorities are encouraging fliers not to lock their suitcases. Anyone who does so runs the risk of having the clasp bashed in by Transportation Security Administration employees who need to search it. Also, the new machines will damage film left in checked bags, so pack it in your carry-on. Digital cameras aren't affected.
Packing certain items, particularly large packages of chocolate or cheese, could also trigger problems. "The machines will flag them because they have the density and makeup of an explosive," says Sergio Magistri, the president and chief executive officer of InVision Technologies, a company that makes the new bag-screening machines. He says the government won't allow him to specify how much candy or cheddar will cause the machine to sound a warning.
What passengers see when they get to the airport will vary with the airport, and, in some cases, with the terminal. At some terminals, suitcases will be scanned in the lobbies by machines. In other terminals, bags will be inspected behind the scenes, out of the owners' presence, and in some cases by hand.
Here are some questions and answers to help you navigate the new procedures:
Where will the bag screening take place?
It depends. In Denver, for example, screeners will do their work in a secure area out of sight of travelers, after they have checked in. In Phoenix and Los Angeles, the TSA plans to place some machines outside near the skycaps for people who use curbside check-in. Curbside check-in will continue to be available even at airports without outdoor screening machines.
Will you have to wait while they screen your checked bag?
Again, it depends where you are. If the equipment is located in the lobby near the ticket counters, it's possible passengers may be asked to wait until their bags clear. This is happening in Las Vegas and Dallas, which already are screening bags. It will also work this way at the Los Angeles airport.
Why not do it the same way everywhere?
Airports are built differently. Some are big and others small. Some have big lobbies and others small lobbies. "There's no cookie-cutter approach to checked bag screening," says Ken Capps, a spokesman for Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. "That's been a big part of the TSA's challenge."
Are airlines going to hold up planes for late bags or leave without them?
"If it's not cleared before departure time, the plane departs," an official with the Air Transport Association says. "We're hopeful that the system will operate as it has since January," when the government began making sure each bag on the plane matches a passenger who has boarded.
Can I insist that my checked bags be searched in front of me if screeners need to open them up?
No. At the airport in Denver, for instance, the screening machines are in a secure area away from passenger walkways. At many others, however, the machines are in public areas. At airports where you're required to wait for your bags to be screened, you will automatically be present if screeners open them up. Even if the machines are behind the ticket counters, it may be possible to stand to the side and watch to see if they need to take your bag out of the machine and open it.
Are they going to place a notice in bags if they've been opened and searched and you weren't there?
Yes. There will also be a phone number on the notice to call if anything is missing from the bags.
Is anything else changing?
At some airports, passengers are being required to show boarding passes, along with a photo ID, to get through the security checkpoints. Before, it was possible to flash a printed itinerary or paper ticket at security and then check in at the gate. To see a full list of airports where this new procedure is in effect, go to www.tsa.dot.gov. (http://www.tsa.dot.gov.) For other tips, check out www.TSATravelTips.us. (http://www.TSATravelTips.us.)
Which airports already have it up and running and how's it going so far?
The number of airports screening all bags increases all the time; it was about 100, as of Nov. 19. An agency spokesman notes at the mammoth Dallas airport, there was "no holdup at all" over Thanksgiving. As of Monday, 338 airports had enough equipment and personnel in place to be screening all luggage, according to a spokesman for Boeing Co., which has a contract to install and maintain the equipment at airports.
The machines have relatively high false-alarm rates. What happens logistically if it trips when your bag is going through?
When your bag triggers an alarm, the government will have to examine it further. Some alarms can be resolved quickly. In other cases, bags will be opened and searched by hand, a more time-consuming process. In many cases, these searches will happen when the passenger is already at the gate.
How do I know whether to blame the airline or the TSA if things disappear from my checked bags?
You won't. The agency will handle theft claims on a case-by-case basis. To provide cover for employees -- and reassurance for passengers -- the agency plans to install video cameras in screening areas, though they won't be in place right away.
Do people involved think there might have been a better time to roll out this new system?
For months, many airport directors urged Congress to extend the Dec. 31 deadline for installing explosive-detection systems, fearing it would create huge lines and chaos during the holidays. The airport directors wanted the TSA to take as much as a year to integrate the automated bomb-detection machines with the baggage conveyor systems.
But the law passed by Congress last year was never as strict as its detractors made it out to be. It doesn't set penalties for not meeting the Dec. 31 deadline.The TSA has said that at fewer than 30 airports, it will be necessary to implement "interim solutions."
Staff Reporters of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
It hardly seems the ideal deadline for overhauling the way airline luggage is screened: 11:59 p.m. on New Year's Eve, right in the middle of the busy holiday travel season.
But that's the timetable Congress set out in the major airport-security law it passed last year after the terrorist attacks. As a result, some Christmas travelers will find a different experience coming home after Jan. 1 than when they left in December.
The law requires airports to begin screening all checked baggage for explosives, primarily with newly installed high-tech scanners. The government has supplied more than 300 of the country's 429 airports with bomb-detection equipment. But it's still scrambling to finish the job at the remaining airports, including a number of big hubs that the government won't identify. Airports that aren't ready in time will have to use bomb-sniffing dogs, hand searches and other means to screen bags.
Federal officials say the security effort won't result in multi-hour waits for passengers, but some airlines and airports are bracing for the worst. UAL Corp.'s United Airlines has been polling passengers by e-mail to see whether they would be willing to drop their bags off early or pay to have someone come pick them up the day before a flight.
"I'd definitely advise travelers to come to the airport earlier than usual, but exactly how these delays...are going to manifest themselves, I just can't predict," says Gina Marie Lindsey, director of Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, who on Wednesday reluctantly approved a plan to drill holes in the expensive terrazzo floor of her facility to make room for temporary bomb-detection equipment.
The rules will affect the way you pack as well. To speed up the screening process and prevent flight delays, authorities are encouraging fliers not to lock their suitcases. Anyone who does so runs the risk of having the clasp bashed in by Transportation Security Administration employees who need to search it. Also, the new machines will damage film left in checked bags, so pack it in your carry-on. Digital cameras aren't affected.
Packing certain items, particularly large packages of chocolate or cheese, could also trigger problems. "The machines will flag them because they have the density and makeup of an explosive," says Sergio Magistri, the president and chief executive officer of InVision Technologies, a company that makes the new bag-screening machines. He says the government won't allow him to specify how much candy or cheddar will cause the machine to sound a warning.
What passengers see when they get to the airport will vary with the airport, and, in some cases, with the terminal. At some terminals, suitcases will be scanned in the lobbies by machines. In other terminals, bags will be inspected behind the scenes, out of the owners' presence, and in some cases by hand.
Here are some questions and answers to help you navigate the new procedures:
Where will the bag screening take place?
It depends. In Denver, for example, screeners will do their work in a secure area out of sight of travelers, after they have checked in. In Phoenix and Los Angeles, the TSA plans to place some machines outside near the skycaps for people who use curbside check-in. Curbside check-in will continue to be available even at airports without outdoor screening machines.
Will you have to wait while they screen your checked bag?
Again, it depends where you are. If the equipment is located in the lobby near the ticket counters, it's possible passengers may be asked to wait until their bags clear. This is happening in Las Vegas and Dallas, which already are screening bags. It will also work this way at the Los Angeles airport.
Why not do it the same way everywhere?
Airports are built differently. Some are big and others small. Some have big lobbies and others small lobbies. "There's no cookie-cutter approach to checked bag screening," says Ken Capps, a spokesman for Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. "That's been a big part of the TSA's challenge."
Are airlines going to hold up planes for late bags or leave without them?
"If it's not cleared before departure time, the plane departs," an official with the Air Transport Association says. "We're hopeful that the system will operate as it has since January," when the government began making sure each bag on the plane matches a passenger who has boarded.
Can I insist that my checked bags be searched in front of me if screeners need to open them up?
No. At the airport in Denver, for instance, the screening machines are in a secure area away from passenger walkways. At many others, however, the machines are in public areas. At airports where you're required to wait for your bags to be screened, you will automatically be present if screeners open them up. Even if the machines are behind the ticket counters, it may be possible to stand to the side and watch to see if they need to take your bag out of the machine and open it.
Are they going to place a notice in bags if they've been opened and searched and you weren't there?
Yes. There will also be a phone number on the notice to call if anything is missing from the bags.
Is anything else changing?
At some airports, passengers are being required to show boarding passes, along with a photo ID, to get through the security checkpoints. Before, it was possible to flash a printed itinerary or paper ticket at security and then check in at the gate. To see a full list of airports where this new procedure is in effect, go to www.tsa.dot.gov. (http://www.tsa.dot.gov.) For other tips, check out www.TSATravelTips.us. (http://www.TSATravelTips.us.)
Which airports already have it up and running and how's it going so far?
The number of airports screening all bags increases all the time; it was about 100, as of Nov. 19. An agency spokesman notes at the mammoth Dallas airport, there was "no holdup at all" over Thanksgiving. As of Monday, 338 airports had enough equipment and personnel in place to be screening all luggage, according to a spokesman for Boeing Co., which has a contract to install and maintain the equipment at airports.
The machines have relatively high false-alarm rates. What happens logistically if it trips when your bag is going through?
When your bag triggers an alarm, the government will have to examine it further. Some alarms can be resolved quickly. In other cases, bags will be opened and searched by hand, a more time-consuming process. In many cases, these searches will happen when the passenger is already at the gate.
How do I know whether to blame the airline or the TSA if things disappear from my checked bags?
You won't. The agency will handle theft claims on a case-by-case basis. To provide cover for employees -- and reassurance for passengers -- the agency plans to install video cameras in screening areas, though they won't be in place right away.
Do people involved think there might have been a better time to roll out this new system?
For months, many airport directors urged Congress to extend the Dec. 31 deadline for installing explosive-detection systems, fearing it would create huge lines and chaos during the holidays. The airport directors wanted the TSA to take as much as a year to integrate the automated bomb-detection machines with the baggage conveyor systems.
But the law passed by Congress last year was never as strict as its detractors made it out to be. It doesn't set penalties for not meeting the Dec. 31 deadline.The TSA has said that at fewer than 30 airports, it will be necessary to implement "interim solutions."