Aviation and Airport

Schipol airport makes waiting in line more entertaining
Today is the busiest day of the year at Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport, with some 170,000 passnegrs expected; the airport authorities hired cabaret artists to entertain those standing in long lines at security checkpoints
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World airport security equipment market to reach $131.7 billion by 2010
The threat terrorism poses for aviation, the increasing diversity of the means at their disposal, and the growing reliance on air travel combine to drive growth of airport security market
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Security lines at airport lengthen
Congress, to save money, has capped the number of security officers that the TSA can hire to man check points at airports; the number of fliers is growing; the result: Longer lines, waiting periods
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Radar outage in Brazil adds to aviation woes
A week ago 191 people died when an Airbus A320 overran a short tarmac in Sao Paulo; on Saturday, traffic control radar went dark
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Fingerprints, face scans at Heathrow's Terminal 5
Heathrow’s Terminal 5 opens in March to serve both domestic and international passengers; both will be fingerprinted, face-scanned to avoid bypassing immigration control
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TSA to lift ban on most lighters on planes
TSA administrator Kip Hawley says “Taking lighters away [from passengers] is security theater,” and agency will allow most lighters on board as of 4 August
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Eight-year old barred from boarding plane
A third-grader was barred from boarding a plane because his name appeared on the no-fly list; airline stewardess tells boy: “We can’t get you on this plane, you’re a terrorist”
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TSA unveils plans for testing advanced X-ray scanner for baggage
TSA to test advance technology X-ray machines, including multi-view and high definition X-rays
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U.K. holiday industry benefits from terror fears, airport security crackdowns
Fears of terrorism abroad and lengthy security checks at airports give boost to U.K. domestic hospitality industry,
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New York law offers security tipsters immunity from prosecution
Six imams were removed from a flight becasue a passenger passed a note to the pilot expressing his suspicion of them; they sued him for discrimination; New York now offers tipsters protection from prosecution
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More security breaches at O'Hare
Do you know how many employee nadges at O’Hare are missing or are unaccounted for? 3,807, that’s how many
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US-VISIT expands to include more biometric information
The current US-VISIT’s two-fingerprint arrival system is used in 115 airports, 15 seaports and 154 land border checks; DHS plans to expand its ten-digit program program
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Four Bulgarian carriers lose license
Bulgaria joins the EU and its airlines must meet the EU’s safety standards; six of the country’s airlines fail insepction and lose license
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Kiwis deny plan to install backscatter X-ray scanner
Backscatter X-ray technology displays anatomically correct images of pasengers as they pass through security; privacy worries have hampered deployment of the technology at airports
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Elbit, Electronica in joint development of systems to defend aircraft
Governments are casting about for affordable and effective systems to defend civilian aircraft from shoulder-mounted missiles; two companies with experience in the field have joined hands to offer a solution
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