TheOtherView
Boston first in airport security improvements
COMMENTARY

In a move that will no doubt be an achievement in both the areas of thorough security and general public relations, Boston's Logan International Airport will become the first major airport in the United States to electronically screen air cargo. The Massachusetts Port Authority will run a 30-day test program to judge the effectiveness of electronic screening, in the hopes that Logan will be able to boast an ability to screen 100 percent of all cargo on commercial airliners.

The process combines cutting-edge technology with a general acknowledgment that not screening large pieces of air cargo creates a serious loophole in the effectiveness of airport security. With so many taxpayer dollars being pumped into airports to ensure that events like those of Sept. 11, 2001, do not happen again, it seems rather foolish, not to mention wasteful, to not attempt to cover all bases. Passenger security checks and general baggage screening have become increasingly thorough in the past two years, but it makes more sense to extend those securities to all forms of on-board items, instead of merely developing individual types of checks. In short, it makes far more sense to spend money on cargo-scanning machines than it is to install flashy flat screen TVs instructing airplane passengers to not accept parcels from strangers.

Logan has often been taken to task for its security, in addition to thousands of complaints levied against MassPort regarding service standards, cleanliness and a whole host of other difficulties and logistical red tape. By spearheading an initiative to make 100 percent screening of cargo a reality, MassPort and airport officials are finally putting aside the internal politics that have ravaged both organizations in favor of making actual progress. Even if the electronic cargo screening process is not a success, the data compiled from the month-long tests will hopefully point airport security scientists in a direction that will yield one.

This move by Logan and MassPort is first and foremost an establishment of new security standards, but the process' successful implication will also mean a public relations windfall for the much maligned airport.
Logan has received a lot of bad press since Sept. 11, but even though logistical difficulty and security lapses still pervade, MassPort is clearly making a concerted effort to reform. For once, Logan is leading the way in cutting edge security measures, instead of revealing itself to be painfully behind.

This is a staff editorial from The Daily Free Press at Boston University. This editorial was distributed by U-Wire.