Pat Down Becomes A Slide Down
Security gets tighter at US airports
(eTN) - Pat downs at US airports are going to get a little bit "friendlier" as security personnel begin using a hand sliding motion instead of the usual pat down. Some airports do not have body scanners, so the pat down - slide down - is the only means of checking what may be on a person's body.
Although the US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) did not provide information on why the slide down will be replacing the pat down, it is predictably a lot easier to detect the bumps and blips that a concealed item may create when a hand slides down clothing versus when garments are tapped.
Airline passengers will also have to provide their full name, date of birth, and gender on all flights that pass through US airports, now that privacy concerns have apparently been addressed.
After the attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, this rule, part of the Secure Flight program, was recommended by the 9/11 Commission, but it did not go into effect right away because of rumblings about privacy invasion. The reasoning behind having to provide this information is to prevent those on the "no fly" list from boarding aircraft.
Invasive, personal, or uncomfortable, it appears that most passengers do not really mind complying with airport security rules, if it means a safer flight.
Comments
So do you hire your own writers or just rent 'em from the TSA?
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