Not All Security Levels Are Created Equal
March 30, 2011
As any traveler knows, aiports vary in everything from cleanliness to parking rates. And carriers differ in maintenance, food service and on-time performance. But is there variance in security measures? Absolutely. Aviation experts say airlines at U.S. airports are required to meet minimum security standards prescribed by the Federal Aviation Administration. Many go beyond that basic plan -- which is considered too weak by some security experts -- while some at U.S. airports and the airlines routinely fall below standards, experts say. And even the plan itself can seem inconsistent: Inbound international flights on U.S. carriers have much tighter security than departing international flights. Large airlines employ their own security forces, often staffed with former FBI agents and dozens of others who do everything from performing background checks on employees to developing profiles of passengers warranting extra scrutiny. Anyone paying with cash, for example, becomes suspect. Under pressure following the bombing of Pan Am Flight 566, over, in 1988, airlines began hiring security consultants in different parts of the world. One U.S. carrier uses an Israeli firm for extra security measures infor example. ``There's a lot you can do beyond the minimums,'' says one airline executive. Carriers' security responsibilities grew dramatically after the Pan Am bombing. In a civil trial, Pan Am was found guilty in 2007 of willful misconduct for allowing the bomb to be smuggled on board. Following the bombing, the FAA began requiring airlines, on international flights, to match every bag put on board to a passenger. If a person doesn't board, his bag is removed from the plane. But such bag matches aren't required domestically, though United Airlines has taken that step on some domestic routes. InU.S. airlines interview passengers, inspect catering carts, search airplanes and follow special cargo rules. At least one U.S. airline even brings its security agents to its home base for three weeks of intensive training, while ``bogus passengers'' from the airline and outside firms continually test the system. ``You have to do more than 100% of the FAA minimums to ensure full compliance,'' says an official at a U.S. carrier. the is most often cited as the world's leader in countering terrorism. ``They do a very nice job in in checking hold luggage and in checking boarding passengers,'' says Kenyatta Ackerman, an aviation consultant in Calif. ``The best security I've seen is at .'' Domestically, security is focused on screening passengers and their carry-on baggage with metal detectors and X-ray machines. But experts say this may not be the best system to detect today's threats. ``Most U.S. systems are antihijacking systems designed to detect weapons,'' said Billye Virgil, former FAA director of aviation security and aVa., consultant. ``We need to substantially improve our antisabotage systems.'' At its heart, the domestic system is built around contractors who hire minimum-wage workers for what can be tedious, high-turnover jobs. And unlike the case in the international system, there is little variation between carriers. Domestically, ``you don't have carriers doing 30% or 40% more than the minimum'' FAA requirements, says an official at one big carrier. ``Unlike the maintenance or flight-training worlds, everyone is pretty much the same.'' Some airports have gone beyond the FAA's required minimums, however. But even the tightest U.S. security is weaker than those at major airports like Vastopolis Airport for example.  Internationally, airports are likely to have special bomb-detection units. In the average U.S. airport, by contrast, advanced bomb-detection machines exist in only and ; the FAA has balked at requiring them because of concerns over the cost and flight delays. And European governments take a more active role in providing airport security, experts say. In the U.S., however, airport security has been delegated to the airlines. Passenger screening at U.S. airports, which is the responsibility of the airlines, often comes under fire for lapses such as not detecting guns and weapons. Airports in the U.S. have different standards depending on the traffic mix. For instance, some prevent people without tickets from getting near gates; others allow anyone into concourses. Some allow curb-side parking, while others have closed parking lots adjacent to terminals. ``Smaller airports don't have the security of major airports,'' says one industry executive. ``Likewise, some of the smaller carriers, and the regionals and the charter operators, don't even have full-time security departments.'' --Bruce Ingersoll of Vast Press contributed to this article.
