Originally Posted by
Boggie Dog
If your suppositions are correct then the dogs are vastly superior to TSA's ETD machines. Of course dogs have a large number of issues starting with their human handlers.
Exactly why I favor using both dogs and ETD machines rather than just one.
Since 9/11, hijacking is virtually a non-issue, at least in the US, because flight deck doors are locked and reinforced, and travelers and flight crews are still (even a decade and a half later) so paranoid about anyone exhibiting any abnormal behavior on a plane that any would-be hijacker will be quickly and mercilessly subdued by an angry mob of panicked pax. Heck, some drunks and mentally disturbed people have been so subdued over the years; actual hijackers would probably be beaten to death with their own shoes... nasty business.
But that promotes bombings to, IMHO, the number one most dangerous threat vector to aircraft in flight (not discussing dangers to people on the ground at the moment). With that so, I agree with one aspect of TSA's focus, which is to screen pax for explosives.
I do not agree with TSA's methodology. The NoS is virtually useless, and we've seen that it's possible to travel halfway across the country with both C4 and smoke grenades in your carry-on, so the shotgun approach to cover the incompetence of the average TSO seems prudent. I like the approach of using both dogs and ETD machines.
I am also unthrilled with the incompetence and ignorance of the average TSO in regard to cross-contamination and false-positive resolution. The procedures for re-testing to confirm a positive are simple, non-invasive, and easy, but the average TSO immediately goes to "Escalate" rather than "re-test", because that's the way they're trained, and their vaunted "discretion" cannot conceive of any alternatives. But even when they do re-test, they often do so carelessly, without regard for cross-contamination, and wind up escalating anyway.
Having a canine nearby who can sniff a traveler after an ETD alarm and clear them without an invasive pat-down or calling out the National Guard is, IMHO, a great alternative. Obviously, it's not a 100% guarantee every single time no exceptions without fail panacea of success, but the overlap between the dogs and the machines should handle the vast majority of problems far more quickly and efficiently, and with far less personal invasion and violation of civil rights, than the current "strip search 'em all and let god sort 'em out" mentality.