Bomb-sniffing canines are nothing new. Police have used them for decades to sniff out explosives secreted in luggage or cargo. Now, they’re being used to quietly screen passengers at Los Angeles International Airport.
According to a prepared release from the airport, the K-9s “are specifically trained to detect a plume of air emitted from a person.” It doesn’t matter if that person is sitting, standing still or moving, LAX contends the dogs can “discreetly screen passengers for Human Borne Improvised Explosive Devices,” or HBIEDs.
The move stems from the failed attempt of Umar Farouk Abdulmuttalab to detonate explosives secreted in his underwear on board a Christmas Day 2009 Delta flight from Amsterdam to Detroit.
Los Angeles International Airport contends its use of canines to sniff out HBIEDs “is the first such program at a U.S. airport.”
Los Angeles Mayor Antonio R. Villaraigosa is recommending that the Transportation Security Administration reviews protocol for the training of explosive-detecting dogs. The aim is to allow K-9 teams to more discreetly screen human beings.
Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck says using dogs to peruse people “adds another layer of protection to help combat potential acts of terrorism.”
One more familiar layer of protection worked recently at San Juan’s Luis Muñoz Marin International Airport. According to a prepared statement by TSA in early May a screener saw something suspicious in a passenger’s shoe. It turned out to be a knife. The TSA officer spotted it when the shoe was X-rayed at the security checkpoint.
Story by Jerry Chandler
(Image: lildevilgrl)
