Nor this: Knives, guns, fake bombs elude airport security
cnn.com
March 26, 2002 Posted: 9:54 AM EST (1454 GMT)
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Security
screeners at 32 U.S. airports failed to
detect most knives and simulated
explosives -- and one of every three
guns -- that federal investigators tried
to smuggle past security checkpoints in
tests after the September 11 attacks, a
government official said Monday.
In hundreds of undercover tests
conducted between November and
February, security screeners missed 70
percent of knives, 60 percent of simulated
explosive devices, and 30 percent of guns.
Overall, screeners failed 48 percent of the
time.
The tests were run by the inspector general of the Transportation Department
following a November 9 order from the White House.
Results of the tests have not been released, but a government source confirmed the
details, first published Monday by USA Today.
White House press secretary Ari Fleischer said the
findings showed why the federal government
decided to take over the airport security system.
"This was done in order to provide the Department
of Transportation with a realistic assessment of the
needs that we have at the airports," Fleischer said.
Under the Aviation and Transportation Security Act
passed in November, the government has until
November 19 to have federal screeners in place at all
429 commercial airports in the United States.
Fleischer said the first wave of senior federal
security screeners will be in place this week, and
1,200 will be trained over the next four weeks. In
all, the federal government plans on hiring 30,000
workers to take over the screening of passengers at
the nation's airports.
"I think it's fair to say that as a result of the legislation enacted by the Congress last
year and its implementation throughout the course of this year, security gets better
at the airports every day," Fleischer said.
Department of Transportation spokesman Lenny Alcivar said the tests reflected the
problems with the old security system.
"Things are not getting worse," he said. "This is really a wake-up call for those who
don't understand why we are going through a top-to-bottom review."
The memo from the inspector general said the federal investigators conducted 738
tests at airport screening checkpoints and hundreds of additional tests to test
security in other parts of the airports.
In cases where investigators sought to bypass security to gain access to the tarmac
or to secretly board an aircraft, they succeeded 48 percent of the time.
Former FAA security chief Billie Vincent told The Associated Press the report was
not surprising, considering the checkpoints were staffed by the same low-paid,
poorly trained screeners who were there before September 11.
In addition, Vincent said, current equipment cannot detect explosives, nor can it
detect many varieties of cutting tools.
"The technology at the screening points is not there," Vincent said. "The current
metal detectors won't do the job. If you turn it high enough to detect that much
metal, you will have an alarm on every person going through." |
