• EU lawyers say U.S. – EU plans air passenger database illegal

    A British newspaper has obtained a confidential government document that reveals a legal opinion stating that the U.S.-EU air passenger database plan is “not compatible with fundamental rights” ; DHS and European officials had reached an agreement to share the personal information of passengers including credit card numbers, travel plans, birth dates, and addresses

  • New commuting method: Personal Aerial Vehicles

    Researchers in Germany have an idea for solving the growing congestions in urban centers: a Personal Aerial Vehicles (PAVs) for traveling between homes and working places; the PAVs will fly at low altitude in urban environments, thus making it unnecessary to change current air-traffic control regulations

  • Houston police nab TSA thief

    In a sting operation, Houston police office arrested a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screener for stealing from passengers at the city’s Intercontinental Airport; Houston’s Intercontinental Airport has had a history of reported thefts; in August 2003 local police arrested another TSA screener for stealing items from passenger’s bags

  • House wants to know about racial profiling at Newark airport

    After a federal report revealed that behavior detection officers (BDOs) at New Jersey’s Newark airport routinely used racial profiling to screen passengers, the heads of the House Homeland Security Committee are demanding answers; according to the January 2010 report, in an effort to boost its performance numbers and appear productive, Newark’s BDO unit began singling out Hispanic passengers for additional screening, searches, and questioning in 2008 and 2009

  • U.K. bans UPS air cargo screening

    The U.K. government appears to have lost confidence in the security screening procedure of UPS – and has now banned UPS from screening air cargo at some facilities in the United Kingdom; last year, a printer filled with explosives was found on a UPS U.S.-bound flight — but the printer was found not because of UPS screnning but owing to a tip-off from an informer; in March, the U.K. security services placed a fake bomb on an Istanbul-bound UPS flight, and the bomb made it to Turkey without being detected

  • New Jersey lawmakers protest transit security cuts

    On Tuesday Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-New Jersey) and Representative Rush Holt (D-New Jersey) urged lawmakers to restore funding for security measures to the nation’s railways; the House budget would cut funding for nine homeland security programs by 55 percent next fiscal year; in particular, funding to secure intercity passenger rail lines, freight trains, and mass transit systems would fall to $113 million down from $250 million, a 45 percent cut

  • Railroad protests $400 million in fines for smuggling drugs

    Railroad companies are protesting nearly $400 million in fines for illegal drugs smuggled aboard its trains; under U.S. law, all shipping companies are subject to fines of $500 per ounce of marijuana and $1,000 per ounce of heroin or cocaine if U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents find drugs hidden in their cargo; Union Pacific argues that they are being punished for the actions of drug smugglers which they cannot control

  • New Jersey Transit unveils new terror text hotline

    NJ Transit recently unveiled its new “Text Against Terror” initiative and is encouraging public transportation riders to report any suspicious items they see via text; the New Jersey transit system is the third largest in the nation with an estimated one million riders per day; New Jersey Transit officials are hoping to enlist the aid of its passengers in the fight against terror.

  • Mud triggers Logan alarm

    Scanning machines at Logan Airport detected minute traces of nitrates in a checked luggage, and sounded the alarm; two gates were evacuated as a precaution; police found that the nitrates emanated from mud sample a Honk Kong University doctoral student was carrying in the luggage; the samples were to be used in research

  • New Coast Guard vessel exceeds expectations in rough Alaskan waters

    The U.S. Coast Guard’s new line of flagship vessels, the National Security Cutter (NSC), has proven invaluable to the agency’s mission since its deployment in 2009; the vessels’ capabilities reflect the additional responsibilities that the Coast Guard has shouldered since the 9/11 attacks; the new Legend Class National Security Cutters come as the replacement for the Coast Guard’s aging Hamilton Class High Endurance Cutters that have been in operation since the 1950

  • China reduces top speed on high-speed rail

    On Monday Chinese officials lowered the top operating speed for its flagship bullet train citing safety concerns; China’s Railway Ministry will now run trains at 155 to 186 miles per hour on the Beijing to Shanghai line instead of 236 miles per hour as was originally planned; the recent announcement comes as part of broader set of changes to the Railway Ministry after Liu Zhijun, the previous minister, was fired for corruption and mismanagement in February

  • Airport Checkpoint of the Future unveiled

    Attendees of the 67th annual Air Transport Association (IATA) annual meeting and World Air Transport Summit in Singapore got a first look at a prototype version of the airport security Checkpoint of the Future; the prototype checkpoint is specifically designed to allow passengers to pass through without having to remove their shoes or get patted down; to make travelling more pleasant and less invasive, the new security checkpoint is outfitted with a suite of sophisticated sensors including eye scanners, x-rays, and metal and liquid detectors

  • House representatives battle for control of TSA

    Representatives Pete King (R-New York) and John Mica (R-Florida) are battling for control over jurisdiction of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA); currently, King’s Homeland Security Committee oversees TSA as airport security checkpoints are manned by DHS employees — making TSA the only government transportation agency that Mica’s Transportation and Infrastructure Committee does not have jurisdiction over; last week Mica introduced an amendment that could place TSA under his committee’s control by moving to require TSA to hire private contractors to conduct airport screenings, thus removing DHS from the equation — and from King’s jurisdiction

  • New detection system uses ultraviolet light to spot explosives

    More than 625 million travelers will take to the air before 2011 is over; the passengers’ carry-on luggage and checked baggage are screened for explosives — but University of Florida researchers say there is a better way to do so; the UF scientists say they have developed the first explosive detection system in the world that utilizes ultraviolet light to zero in on specks of dangerous explosives found in and on luggage; the explosives detection market is estimated to exceed $3 billion in the U.S. alone

  • Bomb sniffing dogs deployed to Long Island ferry

    A New York ferry company has become the first in the United States to receive federal grants to pay for the deployment of explosive detection canine teams; the Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Steamboat Company is teaming up with Long Island K-9 service to use bomb sniffing dogs to detect any explosives aboard the ferries; the canine teams will inspect every car that enters the ferry; teams were initially deployed on 13 May and the contract will last for three years