Originally Posted by FliesWay2Much
I guess I'll admit it -- I interviewed for the then-vacant Deputy Associate Administrator for Civil Aviation Security position back in about 1998. The hardened baggage compartment vault was one of the FAA's showcase projects. There were prototypes undergoing testing at one of their two test facilities -- Atlantic City or Oklahoma City (I forget which one). The intent was that aircraft would have these vaults accessible from the passenger compartment. In theory, if a crew member heard a briefcase going "tick-tick" they could grab it and throw it into the vault where it could detonate safely. The big issue, as I'm sure you can imagine, was weight & volume.
Why not start slamming the airlines for this equipment rather than have the [kinder and gentler words please] TSA [a kinder and gentler word please] steal your stuff
Last edited by Randy Petersen; Mar 2, 2005 at 5:40 pm
Reason: a little too harsh use of the English language. Brackets and words within are mine.