Shoes, refusals, and bins

A few Friday stories of interest:

SHOES

In an attempt to put an end to the frustration of trying to get cleared for a flight at the airport and make the trip through security a little smoother, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is looking to revive an old idea which would handle checking footwear.

Since 2001, the TSA has pushed to have passengers remove their shoes after Richard Reid tried to ignite explosives in his boots on a flight heading to the United States.  By 2006, show removal was mandatory after another failed attempt to blow up planes with liquid explosives.

With close to a dozen companies developing shoe scanning machines, the TSA has stated that it is in the process of buying 100 of these innovative pieces of technology by 2011.  - hiphopwired.com

REFUSAL

Two Muslim women in the United Kingdom refused a full-body scan at an airport, becoming the first fliers to do so, the Daily Mail reports.

The women were traveling together to Islamabad when they were selected at random by security officials to be screened with the full-body scanner.

According to the London newspaper, one of the women refused to pass through because of religious objections, while the other cited medical reasons. - nydailynews.com

BINS

Before I could wipe the stunned look off my face, Mr. Wu hoisted my compact but fairly heavy suitcase stuffed with shoes, books and too many clothes, and gingerly stowed it above my seat. Thanks Larry! Then he proceeded to do the same for other harried passengers as they boarded.

It’s not standard Virgin America procedure but Mr. Wu said it helps speed up the boarding and deplaning process. “I get my workout for the day and people are happy,” he said. He can generally fit more bags in the overhead bins by skillfully flipping them sideways or piling them on top of one another, like a game of Tetris.  And he can help ensure passengers don’t bilk the system by placing their bag at the front of the plane when they are seated farther back. - NYT

Update on March 4, 2010 by Frank@OBOW

USA Today on the shoe scanners…

Update on March 4, 2010 by Frank@OBOW

Comments

[Till]

Not a bad idea. In Germany they just ask you to put your foot on a little plastic platform. A person than used the handheld wand to check the calf and shoe. Very easy. No machine needed. More thorough. But it takes a person and people cost money.

It should simply be built in into the WTMD including a puffer function and an x-ray function. But that would probably take just as long as taking them off and sending them through the x-ray.

The gadget he shows in the clip is fearsome but it can't be used to open the cockpit door. A metal pen can be used just as effectively to kill someone, you just have to stab harder.

I think armored cockpit doors are one of the best ways to deal with hi-jackings. In theory, and a gruesome one at that, a hi-jacker could try to kill everybody on the plane with a knife but the pilot would still be in command and land the plane where he wants. Now if a terrorist got hold of a pilot's family and then somehow got that message to the pilot while in flight, that's about the only way to deroute a plane left.

[Tired of the TSA]

I'm skeptical about these machines holding up in real life, day to day conditions and the TSA being able to maintain and use them properly. But perhaps I'll be pleasantly surprised.

Honestly, I'm so cynical now of anything that the TSA does, that perhaps I'm being unfair. But I just do not trust that agency at all. I don't think I'm alone, either. They made their bed, and now there's plenty of us that do not trust them and their inefficient, power-tripping ways.

As Till points out, the reinforced cockpit doors (along with the unwillingness to no longer go along with everything a highjacker demands), has done more to increase airline security than anything the TSA has ever done.