As important as finding cheap airplane tickets and discount hotel rooms are to the average frequent flier, just about everyone agrees that passenger safety must come first. To that end, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) announced last week that passengers will be seeing and feeling new pat-down procedures at U.S. airports over the coming weeks.
The manual search has been changed to involve the slide of the hand vs. the traditional pat-down. TSA personnel will use the front of their hands when searching and the new procedure will include an agent running his or her hand up the inside of a passengers leg.
Pat-downs provide another layer of security for travelers according to the TSA, which sees Pat-downs are one important tool to help TSA detect hidden and dangerous items such as explosives.
Going forward passengers should expect to see, according to the TSA, an unpredictable mix of security layers that include explosives trace detection, advanced imaging technology, and canine teams, among others.
Pat-down searches are conducted when a passenger sets off a metal detector, a full body detector suggests there is something suspicious, random searches, or when a passenger is acting in a suspicious manner.
Passengers have the right to opt out of being exposed to full body scans but can then expect to receive alternate screening which will include a thorough pat-down.
Airport screening continues to evolve with the rollout of full body scanners. In October scanners were added at Newarks International Airport and Kennedy Airport. As of the end of October there were 317 machines in 65 U.S. airports. The TSA hopes to have 450 installed by the end of the year.
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