USA TODAY International Edition
EGYPTAIR MYSTERY AND TSA
Flight 804’ s disappearance reminds us why airport security can’t be a joke
The crash of EgyptAir Flight 804, en route from Paris to Cairo, illustrates what’s at stake when we discuss airport security. Though it is too soon to say why the jet went down, it serves as an important reminder — in case one was needed — of the potentially devastating consequences of a security lapse.
It is in this context that we should consider what to do about the excruciatingly long security screening lines at airports around the country that have resulted in thousands of passengers missing their flights. Travelers have every right to be frustrated and angry at yet another government failure.
But more than convenience is at stake. As the recent attack at the Brussels airport reminds us, planes are not the only targets. Hundreds of unscreened people in line in a relatively confined space with unscreened bags is an invitation for a terrorist attack.
The Transportation Security Administration needs to get serious about its response. There are several measures it should consider implementing immediately:
Dramatically lower the price of PreCheck. It is now $ 85 per person older than 12, which could cost a family of four $ 340 for their summer trip to the lake. Only about 2 million people have signed up for the program, falling far short of the goal of 25 million set for all so- called trusted traveler programs, including PreCheck and Global Entry. Though enrollment is valid for five years, the low numbers are clear evidence that the cost, coupled with the requirement of an in- person interview, is too high. Consider a $ 10 individual or $ 15 family summer pass good through Labor Day.
Assess airlines that charge for checked bags a hefty “user fee” to offset the cost of hiring more screeners. Strict monitoring will ensure the airlines do not pass on the new user fees to passengers. No one wants to pay the fees for checked luggage — typically $ 25 per bag, each way — so people carry them on, slowing down screening lines. Last year, passenger airlines collected a whopping $ 3.8 billion in baggage fees. And every bag passengers carry on is a bag the airlines don’t have to load, track and deliver.
Or revise the carry- on rules to limit passengers to one regular size backpack ( or something of equal size) and suspend baggage fees, at least temporarily. This will speed screening and ensure plenty of overhead bin space. It will make some people, especially business travelers, very unhappy, but until TSA is able to hire and train the increased number of screeners required, it will keep the lines moving.
Boost hiring and expand screening capacity. TSA has committed to employing an additional 768 screeners, a paltry 2% of the 41,928 screeners now employed. If, as TSA says, the number of travelers is up 12% since 2011 and the number of TSA agents is down 12% over the same period, then TSA has a math problem. Beyond that, TSA needs to deploy the screeners more effectively. If there are only a handful of lanes and machines ( metal detectors, body scanners and Xray machines), then it doesn’t matter how many screeners you have standing around, there are going to be lines. The body scanning machines, in particular, create choke points. Either get more or supplement scanning with metal detectors.
Revise travel schedules to minimize crowding. The Department of Homeland Security should work with the FAA to reduce clustering flights at peak periods. Admittedly, the air travel system is a complex web of arrivals, departures and connections, but where possible, flights should be timed to avoid crowds gathering at the security checkpoint in the first place.
This is by no means an exhaus- tive list. The point is that it is not enough for TSA to say, “Come to the airport extra early.”
In the longer term, we need to reimagine security and function at our airports and other transit hubs. This includes how we hire, vet and train employees, especially security and safety personnel, to be the world’s best experts in what they do; how we physically configure these spaces to accommodate increasing numbers of people; and how we process travelers from the moment they arrive until departure.
Americans have the right to demand a security process that safely and efficiently screens travelers as well as congressional leaders, DHS executives and government workers capable of anticipating and solving problems when they arise.
Having to arrive at the airport three hours early represents a failure of leadership, management and imagination. And the resulting long lines this failure produces are ripe for terrorist exploitation.