by Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, Los Angeles Times
WASHINGTON - Millions of airline passengers will soon be asked to open their checked bags for explosives inspection, federal officials said yesterday as they outlined plans to complete the government’s planned takeover of airport security by year’s end.
The inconvenience, experts said, is occasioned by a Dec. 31 deadline for screening all checked bags with explosives-detection equipment. The security checks should take 2 to 2 1/2 minutes, officials said, citing results from a pilot program in Norfolk, Va.
Newark, N.J., and Boston will be among the first to get federal screeners. Two of the planes hijacked Sept. 11 took off from Boston and one from Newark.
Congress has set deadlines of Nov. 19 for federal screeners to be in place at all airports and Dec. 31 for all checked bags to be screened for explosives.
The luggage policy will be phased in as uniformed federal passenger and baggage screeners begin staffing airport checkpoints in force later this summer, transportation officials said. The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screeners must meet stricter qualifications and complete more rigorous training than did the private guards they are replacing.
Because not enough of the minivan-size machines that scan closed bags for explosives can be built and installed by Dec. 31, TSA decided to bring in smaller units that can pick up residue left by explosives on the outside of closed bags or inside open ones. Trace detectors are much more effective when a bag is opened, so intrusive inspections are required.
Some travelers will experience an extensive inspection of the contents of their checked bags, said Randy Null, TSA’s senior adviser for explosives detection. Others will be asked to open their bags, but only the larger items will be checked. For some, only the outside of their bags will be tested.
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport probably won’t be able to meet the Dec. 31 deadline, said Jeff Fitch, director of airport security.
With not enough scanners to go around, it’s doubtful Sea-Tac will receive enough devices in time. It has four, but a new baggage-conveyer system must also be built to accommodate the devices, Fitch said.
The smaller trace-detection devices will also be tough to set up. Planners determined the airport needs about 180 of the computer desktop-size machines, but where and how to install them in Sea-Tac’s crowded lobby is in question, Fitch said. The airport doesn’t know when federal screeners will take over baggage security, he added.