The San Francisco International Airport is testing a new security system which will allow suspect bags to be automatically separated and searched for explosives.
The security system, currently in operation in the new international terminal, makes use of both conventional X-ray scanners and high-powered machines which can detect explosive substances. All bags are X-rayed, but any that appear suspicious are removed from the baggage conveyor belt by hand to be searched more intensively and scanned for explosives.
Airport spokesman Mike McCarron said the final addition to the system, which is being installed and tested this month, is a "tagging" program to track individual bags. The radio tags will allow bags to be automatically shunted to another conveyor belt for further scanning and examination, either as part of a random search procedure or because a passenger has been flagged as a possible security risk, McCarron said.
The tags will also help ensure that the bags of a passenger who has not boarded the plane will stay in the airport. Although intended primarily as a security measure, this may have the added benefit of reducing lost luggage.
The completed security system will exceed the requirements set down by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, which has asked all airports to implement systems that screen for explosives on international flights by 2009.
"It's a higher level, but it's probably going to become the norm," McCarron said, noting that it was easier for San Francisco to incorporate the system into the design of its new terminal than it would be for others to retrofit existing security and baggage handling systems.<
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