• Airline passengers in Canada to pay more to fund increased air port security

    The Canadian government says there is a need to invest much more money to bolster air travel security in Canada — but it does not want to raise taxes; the solution: an increase of the Air Travelers Security Charge charged to air travelers

  • U.K. begins trials of monitoring suspicious behavior Heathrow

    U.K. government begins trial of behavioral monitoring at Heathrow Airport; monitors will look not only for suspicious objects, but for suspicious behavior; the behavioral assessment will be used in conjunction with intelligence information and new technology, like the full body scanners, to improve the safety

  • Debate intensifies over private planes security measures

    There are 220,000 private planes operated in the United States, flying out of 19,000 airports, most of them small, community airports; in 2008 the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) proposed tougher security regulation of 15,000 of these planes — mostly private jets — which fly out of 4,700 airports; facing stiff resistance from owners and operators of these planes, TSA two weeks ago announced it would relax the proposed security requirements; last week’s suicide attack on a Texas office building causes TSA to reconsider the whole issue

  • HTS unveils vehicle identity recognition system

    HTS offers a vehicle identity recognition system which recognizes the vehicle’s manufacturer logo (car model), vehicle body and plate color, special icons on the plate itself (such as handicap), and country or state name; the system will help police to detect vehicles with false license plates, such as stolen cars, and detect any discrepancies between the vehicle type and its license plate number

  • Nigeria ordering Rapiscan backscatter imaging systems for the country's international airports

    The government of Nigeria is deploying Rapiscan’s Secure 1000 Single Pose backscatter whole-body scanners at the country’s four international airports; the systems will be used to screen passengers traveling to the United States as well other countries

  • DHS awards L-3 Communication $164.7 million for millimeter wave scanners

    The drive toward deploying whole-body scanners at U.S. airports accelerates; L-3 receives a $164.7 million order from TSA for the company’s ProVision millimeter wave (MMW) advanced imaging technology; more than 200 ProVision systems are deployed worldwide at airports and other facilities

  • Paris airport starts deploys full-body scanner

    France follows the U.K. in deploying whole-body scanners for U.S.-bound passengers; the scanners are currently deployed at the Charles de Gaulle airport, but will be rolled out to other airports during the next few months

  • Debate revived over the security threat small planes pose

    There are about 200,000 small and medium-size aircraft in the United States, using 19,000 airports, most of them small; last Thursday’s suicide attack on an office building in Austin, Texas revives debate over the security threat small planes pose, and how strict the security measures applied to general aviation should be

  • Air traffic control shortage endangers New York air security

    The New York air traffic system is the busiest air system in the United States, and the second busiest in the world, with more than 107 million passengers each year; some 5,000 flights per day arrive in and depart out of the six major airports in the New York City metropolitan area; the Federal Aviation Administration says 270 air traffic controllers are needed for the New York area, but the actual number of fully trained and certified air traffic controllers has never risen above 211; that number has now dropped to 158

  • Aussie union: Bombers could beat airport security

    Australian unions complain that the practice of hiring temporary workers to handle baggage poses security risk; about 25 percent of temporary employees working at Australian airports at any time had not been security-checked; instead, they were covered by a temporary visitor pass while their application for a security ID card was processed

  • Incentives for private industry, risk-based inspection for cargo containers

    There is no consensus on the number of cargo containers entering U.S. ports each year — the figures quoted range from 11.6 to 15 million; there is a consensus, however, that implementing the Congressionally mandated 100 percent inspection of these containers is a Herculean task; some suggest instead a risk-based inspection combined with more incentives to the private sector to make containers secure

  • TSA bolsters airport scanning

    The U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is now swabbing the hands of some passengers for traces of explosives; also, explosive detection machines are put on carts and rolled down the concourses to boarding areas, randomly rescreening passengers who are already in the “sterile area” of the airport

  • Screeners force a 4-year old disabled boy to remove supporting leg braces, then limp through security

    TSA screeners at the Philadelphia airport force a 4-year old disabled boy to remove supporting leg braces, then limp through security on his own in front of stunned passengers; mom not allowed to hold boy’s hand; incident violates TSA policy that says that people with disabilities do not have to remove a support brace, and that they can ask for a private screening and can have assistance

  • Art world worried about new rule on air cargo

    As of 1 August, all items shipped as cargo on commercial passenger airplanes will have to go through airline security screening; as much as 20 percent of art shipped around the world travels this way, and museums, galleries, and collectors are worried: even the faint possibility of an airline inspector with a screwdriver uncrating a Calder sculpture or an early Renaissance tempera painting is enough to keep many in the art world awake at night

  • Muslim religious group: Airport body scanners violate Islamic law

    A leading Muslim organization in the United States issues a ruling saying that whole-body scanners violates Islamic laws on modesty; the organizations urges all Muslims to choose pat-downs instead; TSA says that the pat-down option is available to all passengers