Airport gets security break

News-press.com (Gannett News Serv.) ^ | 5-24-02 | Anne Mitchell

[doug from upland]

The federal agency set up to oversee airline safety is allowing the Lee County Port Authority to bend a 300-foot security rule by building a parking garage 225 feet from the new Midfield Terminal.

The decision by the Transportation Safety Administration has raised concern about public safety.

[doug from upland]

Ball said he’s confident in the airport’s security. “We have one of the best police departments in the country, we have bike and foot patrols, canine explosives units, and close circuit TV.”

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What an assinine statement. The concern is the flying glass shards that will kill people. I guess the bike and foot patrols will stand in front of the terminal and stop the blast wave, huh?

Anne got the story wrong. The fragmentation will be 2000 feet, not 200 feet. Ontario, CA just re-opened its close short-term parking as has San Jose. Sea-Tac stopped about a month ago. A woman who works for the government and flies out of San Jose told me that she was stopped for just a few seconds and they merely peeked at her back seat through the window. As I stated in a previous piece, this is a disaster waiting to happen. I have been told that John Wayne Airport in Orange County, CA and Reno Airport are still stopping people on the way in and opening trunks for inspection.

If a terrorist puts a bomb in short-term parking at Fort Myers, the killing zone after the blast wave hits the glass will be up to about 181 feet.

Give the Brits their due. They have been fighting IRA terrorists and bombs for 3 decades and have learned a few things.

[doug from upland]

“I am not about to get into a debate with a so-called expert about the criteria the federal government has determined to establish their baseline security,” Ball said. “We are not going to base our priorities on a vendor who tries to sell a particular product and has his own agenda and who has basic arguments against the federal government.”

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Yes, Ashton does have a product. What Ball fails to tell you, however, is that the company that made the evaluation which convinced the FAA to allow the waiver is a sister company of the engineering firm who designed the new terminal. Can you say "conflict of interest?"

[been_lurking]

If I am in the car parked on either side of the one with a bomb, I really don't give a darn if the mandated safety distance is 200 feet, 300 feet or 3000 feet.

All risk has to be assessed in terms of what is "acceptable" and what is not "acceptable". There are no perfect solutions.

(I wonder how everybody would feel if they were forced to park and walk from a really "safe" distance.)

[doug from upland]

Much of the problem could be solved if vehicles were checked on the perimeter. That is the first rule about safety. It's too late when the bad guys get inside where they can do maximum damage.

I talked about a sniffer device on another post. It can detect traces of nitrates and should be used before vehicles enter. Is it expensive? Yes, about a million and a half bucks. Is it worth it? You can determine that after a terminal is blown up and air traffic shuts down again across the country.

[doug from upland]

Here is a graphic showing the killing range of glass at the Fort Myers airport. An explosive expert from the TSA has agreed with Ashton's assessment.

CLICK.

[doug from upland]

Well, well. Someone is taking notice. An airport director in Florida is going to meet Ashton and go over the concerns. So-called expert, my butt. He has 30 years of expertise in this field.