Passenger
Screening:
in the post-Abdulmutallab era
The Christmas Day attempted downing of a Northwest Airlines flight has
brought into focus the need for technologies that can detect devices
concealed beneath the clothing or within the body. Philip Baum reviews
the solutions available and considers how they might best be incorporated
into the passenger screening checkpoint.
S
uddenly the world’s talking about the archway metal detector to the This article will consider how we
body scanners! It took one inci- history books and many of the general should welcome the introduction
dent on a Northwest Airlines public resigned themselves to having of body scanners to the airport, yet
flight from Amsterdam to Detroit to to accept a form of screening that was deploy them in such a manner as
demonstrate to the world what the deemed an excessive invasion of privacy to derive maximum benefit, cause
security industry has known for years on Christmas Eve. minimum delays and inject a healthy
– passengers can conceal explosives Once again, regulators, airports and dose of common sense to the aviation
on their bodies without their being the media are demonstrating their security profession.
detected using standard metal detec- propensity for knee-jerk reactions to
tion technology. the events of yesterday rather than Body Scanning
With a puff of smoke, as that’s all Umar developing a security strategy that will There are body scanners and there are
Farouk Abdulmutallab managed to be capable of catering for our security body scanners. In other words, there
achieve, many in the media condemned needs in 2011, 2012 and beyond... are a range of different technologies
12 Register now for FREE instant access to ASI online by visiting www.asi-mag.com February 2010 Aviationsecurityinternational
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