Airport security in holding pattern

Jace Radke

Tuesday, June 4, 2002 | 10:55 a.m.

Airport security is in full transition as airlines and airports cede responsibility to federal authorities -- and things are not running smoothly.

The newly formed Transportation Security Administration wants explosives screening in place for all checked baggage by Dec. 31, but many of the country's airport managers -- including McCarran International Airport's Randy Walker -- say the deadline cannot be met.

"We don't want to see a system thrown together just to meet an arbitrary deadline," Walker said. "We want an extension so we can slow down and do it better.

"I suspect that if we don't do something, the lines at the ticket counters will match the lines at the checkpoints after Sept. 11. Flying's going to be painful, and that's not good for a city that relies on people visiting."

The Aviation and Transportation Security Act requires that all baggage be checked by explosives detection machines (EDS) in 2003. The problem is that the machines -- which are the size of a minivan -- are in short supply. Personnel to run the machines and the space to hold them are also at a premium.

Compounding the problem is that McCarran is the second busiest airport in the world measured by the number of passengers originating or finishing a trip there -- meaning potentially big backups in bomb screening areas. Last summer and fall more than 8.4 million people either began or finished a flight at McCarran -- second only to Los Angeles International Airport with 8.6 million.

"Other airports have much more commuter traffic, but at McCarran 90 percent of the people are going through ticketing," airport spokeswoman Hilarie Grey said. "No matter how many EDS machines we get, we'll probably have longer lines in ticketing than some other places."

McCarran currently has four of the $1 million EDS machines, three in the main ticketing area and another in the international terminal. Spaces are mapped out in ticketing for 13 more. The Transportation Security Administration is paying for the machines.

Airlines are sharing the machines and sending some luggage through, but some of the 63,000 checked bags that pass through McCarran every day are not screened at all.

"We'd need about 60 of them to screen all the checked baggage, and there just aren't enough of them available," Walker said. "Even if there were, airports have no space to put them without major construction."

Airport planners estimate that it would cost at least $200 million and take three years to expand the ticketing area to fit the massive machines.

In a letter to Department of Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta mailed last week, the Airport Alliance -- a conglomerate of airports that accounts for 61 percent of the nation's air travelers in Las Vegas, San Francisco, Seattle and other major cities -- warned that the Dec. 31 deadline is unrealistic.

Mineta has said that the deadline is firm, but has offered an alternative to the EDS machines.

Smaller tabletop devices, known as explosives trace detection equipment, or ETD, could be used instead. ETD can detect explosives residue on swabs that screeners rub on baggage.

If enough machines can be manufactured by the deadline, the government would like to employ a combination of 1,100 scanning machines and 4,700 bomb detection machines to screen baggage in the nation's 429 airports.

"The problem is they have not made a decision on this, and we don't know how many ETD machines we'd need, or how many people we'd need to run them," Walker said. "Whatever they choose to do we're already seven months into this act, and there is going to have to be some time for airports to plan (to provide) electricity and the space for these machines."

Transportation Security Administration officials are working to develop a certification test for the ETD, so that they can be employed by the deadline.

Southwest Airlines, McCarran's largest carrier, has already had some experience with explosives trace detection equipment, airline spokeswoman Whitney Eichinger said.

"The Transportation Security Administration has allowed us to use the swabbing technique in Dallas, and it seems to be working well," Eichinger said of the $40,000 machines. "We've been using a variety of methods, and I think that will continue. We're working closely with the TSA to balance customer service and security."

Southwest would not release the percentage of bags that are checked for explosives due to security concerns.

For the time being travelers will continue to see the variety of screening options currently in place. Airlines now use random checks by hand, EDS and bomb-sniffing dogs to screen checked luggage.

Walker said that most airlines have gone to a "bag match" system like the one used in Europe to meet federal requirements without having to screen every piece of baggage for explosives.

Bag matching requires that a passenger's luggage does not get loaded onto a plane unless the passenger is also aboard. If the luggage is stowed but the passenger is not on the plane for some reason, the airline will take the bag off, causing a delay. Bag matching would not prevent a suicide bombing, Walker said.

Along with the EDS machines, 45,000 federal employees are scheduled to be in place by the deadline as checked luggage screeners.

"I hope they'll be in place, but I'm not confident," Walker said.