Posted on 12/31/2009 11:28:50 AM PST by goldstategop
While North America's airports groan under the weight of another sea-change in security protocols, one word keeps popping out of the mouths of experts: Israelification.
That is, how can we make our airports more like Israel's, which deal with far greater terror threats with far less inconvenience.
"It is mind boggling for us Israelis to look at what happens in North America, because we went through this 50 years ago," said Rafi Sela, the president of AR Challenges, a global transportation security consultancy. He has worked with the RCMP, the U.S. Navy Seals and airports around the world.
"Israelis, unlike Canadians and Americans, don't take s--- from anybody. When the security agency in Israel (the ISA) started to tighten security and we had to wait in line for – not for hours – but 30 or 40 minutes, all hell broke loose here. We said, `We're not going to do this. You're going to find a way that will take care of security without touching the efficiency of the airport.'"
Despite facing dozens of potential threats each day, the security set-up at Israel's largest hub, Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion International Airport, has not been breached since 2002, when a passenger mistakenly carried a handgun onto a flight. How do they manage that?
The first layer of actual security that greets travellers at Ben Gurion is a roadside check. All drivers are stopped and asked two questions: How are you? Where are you coming from?
"Two benign questions. The questions aren't important. The way people act when they answer them is," Sela said.
Once you've parked your car or gotten off your bus, you pass through the second and third security perimeters.
Armed guards outside the terminal observe passengers as they move toward the doors, again looking for odd behaviour. At Ben Gurion's half-dozen entrances, another layer of security is watching. At this point, some travellers will be randomly taken aside, and their person and their luggage run through a magnometer.
"This is to see that you don't have heavy metals on you or something that looks suspicious," said Sela.
You are now in the terminal. As you approach your airline check-in desk, a trained interviewer takes your passport and ticket. They ask a series of questions: Who packed your luggage? Has it left your side?
"The whole time, they are looking into your eyes – which is very embarrassing. But this is one of the ways they figure out if you are suspicious or not. It takes 20, 25 seconds," said Sela.
Lines are staggered. People are not allowed to bunch up into inviting targets for a bomber who has gotten this far.
At the check-in desk, your luggage is scanned immediately in a purpose-built area. Sela plays devil's advocate – what if you have escaped the attention of the first four layers of security, and now try to pass a bag with a bomb in it?
"I once put this question to Jacques Duchesneau (the former head of the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority): say there is a bag with Play-Doh in it and two pens stuck in the Play-Doh. That is `Bombs 101' to a screener. I asked Duchesneau, `What would you do?' And he said, `Evacuate the terminal.' And I said, `Oh. My. God.'
"Take (Toronto's) Pearson (airport). Do you know how many people are in the terminal at all times? Many thousands. Let's say I'm (doing an evacuation) without panic – which will never happen. But let's say this is the case. How long will it take? Nobody thought about it. I said, `Two days.'"
A screener at Ben Gurion has a pair of better options.
First, the screening area is surrounded by contoured, blast-proof glass that can contain the detonation of up to 100 kilos of plastic explosive. Only the few dozen people within the screening area need be removed, and only to a point a few metres away.
Second, all the screening areas contain `bomb boxes.' If a screener spots a suspect bag, he/she is trained to pick it up and place it in the box, which is blast proof. A bomb squad arrives shortly and wheels the box away for further investigation.
"This is a very small, simple example of how we can simply stop a problem that would cripple one of your airports," Sela said.
Five security layers down: you now finally arrive at the only one which Ben Gurion airport shares with Pearson – the body and hand-luggage check.
"But here it is done completely, absolutely 180 degrees differently than it is done in North America," Sela said.
"First, it's fast – there's almost no line. That's because they're not looking for liquids, they're not looking at your shoes. They're not looking for everything they look for in North America. They just look at you," said Sela. "Even today with the heightened security in North America, they will check your items to death. But they will never look at you, at how you behave. They will never look into your eyes ... and that's how you figure out the bad guys from the good guys."
The goal at Ben Gurion is to move fliers from the parking lot to the airport lounge in 25 minutes tops.
And then there's intelligence. In Israel, Sela said, a coordinated intelligence gathering operation produces a constantly evolving series of threat analyses and vulnerability studies.
"There is absolutely no intelligence and threat analysis done in Canada or the United States," Sela said. "Absolutely none."
But even without the intelligence, Sela maintains, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab – who allegedly tried to blow up Northwest Airlines Flight 253 on Christmas Day – would not have gotten past Ben Gurion's behavioural profilers.
So. Eight years after 9/11, why are we still so reactive?
Sela first blames our leaders, and then ourselves.
"You can easily do what we do. You don't have to replace anything. You have to add just a little bit – technology, training," Sela said. "But you have to completely change the way you go about doing airport security. And that is something that the bureaucrats have a problem with. They are very well enclosed in their own concept."
And rather than fear, he suggests outrage would be a far more powerful spur to provoking that change.
"Do you know why Israelis are so calm? We have brutal terror attacks on our civilians and still, life in Israel is pretty good. The reason is that people trust their defence forces, their police, their response teams and the security agencies. They know they're doing a good job. You can't say the same thing about Americans and Canadians. They don't trust anybody," Sela said. "But they say, `So far, so good.' Then if something happens, all hell breaks loose and you've spent eight hours in an airport. Which is ridiculous. Not justifiable."
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find only things evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelogus
True, but there is absolutely no comparison between the amount of air travel in Israel and that in the United States. It is like comparing Home Depot to the corner hardware store.
We’re too PC-ified to take the Israeli approach to airport security.
According to El Al they recommend you arrive 3 hours before your flight. That type of early arrival time in the US will not be tolerated and kill the short/intermediate routes. El Al spends around $100 MM on security, about 10% of revenues. It survives because it is backed by the Israeli government. Many aspects of El Al’s program simply cannot be scaled up to the volume on the major US Carriers.
I think one point that could be taken out of this is that the Israelis TRUST their government to protect them. This simple point is paradoxical to the American experience. It is paradoxical in that we distrust the government to protect us yet that is one of the Federal government’s purposes according to the Constitution.
If airport screening was handled by a competent government with the security of the people being its sole concern and sans unions of any type, I believe America would again be one of the safest places in the world. Sadly, we can’t even stop the flood of immigrants over our southern borders, further jeopardizing our safety.
Obama’s going to do something, but it’s not anything we’re going to enjoy.
But that system can work in one airport with 100-200 smart people working. In the United states with hundreds of airports and 1000’s of workers that don't care it wont work.
Honestly it should work like this. Next attempted attack we deport 150000 Muslims. second another 150000 third we nuke Medina fourth we nuke Mecca.
B-G is pretty intensely crowded and busy. Its the only
air hub for the country which puts in the same class as
any major league US airport. And if Israeli style survellance can work at one terminal it can work at all.
Israelis feel that they have a stake in this, whereas
TSA view it as a job. Of course, the average Israeli
working security is in a different league than the average TSA screener. You can’t train for passion, you can only
screen applicants for it.
“Israel has lessons to teach us in that regards. “
Sadly, I don’t see any willingness by our Muslim president to be “schooled” by the Israelis on anything. Instead, he’d much rather browbeat them about their settlements or sit on his hands while the Israelis do the hard work of eradicating the Iranian nuclear threat.
We needn’t be surprised if following successful execution of the latter, Obama haughtily chastises Israel for not having the patience to let his diplomatic efforts do their work. In the meantime, billions around the world will breathe a sigh of relief and start marking on their calendars the number of days until Obama leaves office and America can be counted upon again to reliably confront the globe’s bullies.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find only things evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelogus
I like your plan. It should work.
The current “system” has already killed the short-intermediate flights. Many people will now drive 5-8 hrs. rather than fly 1-2 hrs. since the total time invested is about the same.
When FDR put the Japanese who lived near military installations into camps he said he did so for their safety and the safety of America since it was difficult to know what allegiances some of them might really have to the Emperor and his worship. Same with Muslims in this country how can we know of their loyalty when more than a million support killing the infidels in this war? Time has come to offer them a free pass to leave the US or live in camps until this war is over.
Exactly. I used to fly 750 miles in a little over two hours total. Now, it’s at least six hours, essentially making it a day trip. I’d rather drive it in ten for 1/5 the cost, since the time requirements effectively became equal.
the problem is scaling it up. Israel has what 8 million people and we have about 300 million people.
If you’d like to be on or off, please FR mail me.
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The key difference doesn’t cost more money, but less.
We look for weapons, Israel looks for terrorists.
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