McCarran says it’s safe

Jace Radke and Steve Kanigher

Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2001 | 10:44 a.m.

Is McCarran International Airport secure? Is it safe for passengers?

The answer to both of those questions is a resounding "Yes," according to Clark County Aviation Director Randy Walker. He is confident in that assessment even though McCarran relies on a three-pronged security system with no central authority.

Security at McCarran, as well as at all other airports in this country, is decentralized because that is the way the system was designed by the Federal Aviation Administration. At McCarran security falls under three distinct divisions of authority:

"Overall, aviation transportation is very safe, and with the increased security measures since those despicable acts, there is a very high level of security," Walker said.

Two federal task forces -- one focusing on airlines, the other on airport security -- are scheduled to forward recommendations Monday to Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta that could make McCarran and other airports even safer.

The FAA, which has a local security office to make sure McCarran and its airlines follow federal security guidelines, initially reacted to the terrorism by barring curbside baggage check-in and parking within 300 feet of a terminal building, and by barring passengers from carrying any sharp objects aboard the planes.

The task forces are expected to make additional recommendations that will likely address armed air marshals aboard planes, cockpit access and federal control of security checkpoints.

The FAA's current regulations provide only a baseline for security, leaving airports and airlines to decide how they will protect passengers. Security procedures outlined in Federal Aviation Regulations 107 and 108, which deal with airline and airport security, are "purposefully vague," FAA spokesman Jerry Snyder said.

Airports and airlines have been left to tailor their own security plans, which are then submitted to the FAA for approval and kept confidential. Because of the secrecy surrounding the plans, it's difficult to compare plans among airports or even among airlines.

"A lot of that information, should it get in the hands of someone who wants to thwart security, would be valuable," Snyder said.

The FAA serves as a watchdog to make sure that airlines and airports follow their plans.

"Once the plan is approved, we go through and test it, but that doesn't mean that every airport or airline has the same security," Snyder said. "Within the security community, there are forums and meetings that allow for ideas to be shared, and when the FAA finds things that work, we make recommendations."

McCarran had no violations of its plan from 1997 through 2000, according to FAA records. However, it's impossible to determine whether airlines were cited for violations at McCarran, because when the FAA cites airlines, it does not release at which airports the violations occurred.

McCarran's largest carrier, Southwest Airlines, had a greater-than-average history of security violations between 1997 and 2000. It led all airlines in the amount of fines it paid for violations per million passenger miles flown: $10.37, compared with an industry average of about $7, according to the FAA.

Southwest spokeswoman Kristen Nelson, said that the numbers do not give a true picture of security at Southwest, because airline fines are filtered down through the largest carrier at an airport. The system is similar to when a group of friends go out to dinner and the individuals pay their portion of the tab to one of the friends, who then pays the bill with a credit card.

"Security is a shared responsibility," Nelson said. "Every carrier is responsible for their own security, but as a matter of convenience the FAA usually sends a fine to the largest carrier at the airport. The other airlines then pay the fines through the biggest carrier at the airport."

McCarran security

The front line for security at McCarran starts with clip-on badges that give the 12,000 airport and airline employees access to various parts of the airport, from the terminals to the runways. The badges are issued by the county aviation department's security division.

All of the badges include picture identification with coded strips on the back. McCarran, in fact, became the nation's first airport to use computerized identification badges in 1990.

Three colors of badges provide different levels of access.

Food servers and employees at the various shops in the airport receive white badges, which allow them access through employee-only entrances into their shops.

Green badges, the middle security level, are given to employees who need to get out on the ramp and around the planes, such as custodians, mechanics and baggage handlers.

Red cards allow access to the entire runway and are used by police officers, firefighters and some maintenance and repair personnel.

All individuals with passes have to go through security checkpoints in the airport building, though workers wearing red passes can get to the runways through entrances that bypass the metal detectors.

Airport administrators decide whether to issue badges to potential employees based on a lengthy process.

McCarran security administrators first verify employment histories of the past 10 years. Metro Police then conducts criminal background checks, also going back 10 years. Now all criminal checks are being redone, after the the FAA on Monday ordered that precaution, Metro airport unit Sgt. Robert Bullard said.

"Everybody gets the same check, so we can see if they are wanted in any jurisdictions," Bullard said. "There is a list of about 20 crimes that the FAA sets out as automatic disqualifiers if committed in the 10 years prior to the check."

Some of the crimes on the FAA's list include murder, assault, espionage, kidnapping, rape or sexual abuse, armed robbery, felony arson and various aircraft-related crimes, including piracy.

A felony conviction will get applicants rejected in most cases. But some felonies, such as burglaries and possession of controlled substances without intent to distribute, are not on the list of crimes that call for automatic denial of security clearance.

"There are some crimes that aren't on the list, like burglary, but if applicants have been convicted of those crimes, they can still be denied," Bullard said. "It's a case-by-case basis. We've denied people with misdemeanors."

While other states don't require it, in Nevada all security consultants,including Argenbright, must have a state-issued work card, according to Carol Hanna, executive director of the Nevada Private Investigators Licensing Board."No one with a felony conviction or a record of dangerous weapons offense and crimes involving moral turpitude, can get a work card," Hanna said.

Once applicants pass the background check, they must take a one-hour class on airport security and score 100 percent on a written exam covering what they learned.

McCarran's security administrator, Al Krisch, oversees those measures. Krisch has a military background, piloting experience and is a former air operations coordinator at McCarran, airport spokeswoman Debbie Millett said, though she added that the county would not release his resume.

Hired in January 1992, Krisch makes about $56,600 annually. The minimum requirements for his job, according to county records, include the equivalent of a bachelor's degree in business or public administration and at least three years of experience in airport security. Law enforcement experience also is preferable.

Krisch's office maintains an emergency response plan that details the responsibilities of law enforcement agencies, airport security and rescue personnel in case of a calamity at McCarran. The document, which is not public, is on file with the FAA.

Members of the airport security team meet monthly with Metro, Argenbright and, if necessary, the FBI, U.S. Customs Service and Immigration and Naturalization Service to discuss security issues. Since the recent attacks, those meetings have occurred daily.

"They've had more meetings than I can count," Walker said. "I've had staff meet until 3 in the morning. At the moment the goal is to do what is necessary."

Metro Police

While McCarran's security function is largely administrative, its staff relies heavily on Metro Police stationed at the airport to give security regulations teeth.

If someone runs through a security checkpoint or goes into an unauthorized area, Metro officers are dispatched. Unruly passengers and fights either in airplanes or in the airport also get a Metro response.

FAA rules require the Metro officers stationed at McCarran to get training in airport security beyond their police academy training, including the "courteous and efficient treatment of persons subject to inspection, detention, search, arrest and other aviation security activities."

The 39 officers, six sergeants and one lieutenant who are assigned to the airport police detachment consider the airport a small community, Lt. Bill Cavagnaro, who leads Metro's airport section.

"Like any community, there is going to be some criminal activity and disturbances," Cavagnaro said.

Since the recent attacks, Metro's presence has increased, with all officers assigned to the airport working five 12-hour days a week instead of the normal four 10-hour days, Cavagnaro said. Their salaries are paid by the county's aviation department.

Metro officials and McCarran administrators are discussing whether to increase Metro's contingent at the airport, but no decisions have been made yet.

Metro officers are the only security members allowed to carry firearms in the airport, with the exception of federal air marshals, who already have started boarding planes.

Airline security

FAA guidelines require airlines to cover two major areas of security: baggage handling and security checkpoints. The airlines at McCarran have contracted with Argenbright, an Atlanta-based company owned by international security provider Securicor, to staff the checkpoints.

The largest carrier at an airport -- it's Southwest at McCarran -- is responsible for choosing the firm to check the passengers and their carry-on bags, and the other airlines pay their share of the contract.

Argenbright has provided checkpoint security at McCarran for 12 years and provides security at about 40 percent of the nation's airports, including 17 of the 20 largest airports in the country, according to Securicor's website.

Argenbright runs checkpoints at Washington Dulles and Newark, N.J., airports, where two of the four hijacked planes originated on Sept. 11. The company has about 16,000 employees in the U.S. and 4,000 employees in Europe, where the firm operates as ADI, and provides security services at London's Heathrow and Gatwick airports among others.

Last year the company was fined $1 million after pleading guilty to charges of conducting inadequate training, testing and background checks on employees who staffed checkpoints at the Philadelphia airport from 1995 to 1998.

When asked about the number of security employees at McCarran and the training they receive, an Argenbright spokesman initially promised to provide the information, but did not return numerous follow-up calls from the Sun.

According to Nevada Private Investigator Licensing Boardrecords Argenbright has about 100 contract security workers statewide.

A spokeswoman for the board did not know how many were stationed at McCarran, and added that there have been no complaints about Argenbright to her office.

The FAA requires screeners to have at least a high school degree or general equivalency diploma, and they must possess proper color perception, physical coordination and motor skills. All screeners are subject to annual evaluations.

Who should be doing the screening at the nation's airports is the focus of much of the debate on airport security, with many elected officials, including Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., calling for federal agents to take over the security checkpoints.

Walker said that he doesn't see too many arguing with that idea.

"It's fairly universal that we need to find another way to do the security screening that is not the airlines," Walker said. "The airlines are a business, and a business always looks at the bottom line. When they bid out, they tend to go with the lowest bidder.

"They think price first, and I think what we need to do is reverse it and think safety first."

Walker said one alternative is that the local governments that run the airports could take charge of the screening process, but it would have to happen industry-wide.

"That could be something that could be talked about, but the discussion I hear most is to federalize it."

The Air Transport Association, a trade association representing 22 airlines, has asked the FAA to study turning the screening process over to the federal government.

The FAA has estimated that putting the federal government in charge of baggage and passenger screening could cost taxpayers as much as $2 billion a year.

All items that go onto the airplanes besides passengers and their carry-on bags are screened by airline employees or others hired by the airline. That includes checked baggage, food, gasoline and even blankets and pillows.

Spokeswomen from both Southwest and America West, McCarran's second largest carrier, said that checked baggage is screened in large rooms behind the ticketing counters, but the exact nature of that screening is confidential.

Since the attacks, Southwest Airlines also has had screeners examine the contents of checked baggage at the ticket counter, Southwest spokeswoman Kristen Nelson said.

Once checked, the baggage continues to be handled by airline employees, known as ramp agents, until it is loaded onto the airplane.

The FAA requires ramp agents to undergo the same background checks as other airport employees but does not lay out training they should receive.

Southwest's ramp agents receive all of their training from Southwest, Nelson said. America West declined to comment about training it requires of its ramp agents.

Airlines also are responsible for keeping the planes secure while at the airport, and must conduct a security inspection before placing an airplane into service or after it has been left unattended.

"We meticulously enforce all security procedures, and there are precautions and checks that go on between the counter and the plane," Nelson said. "Safety is always our first priority, and we will work with the government to implement the best safety precautions and procedures."

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