At least one U.S. airline is supporting the Transporation Security Administration's enhanced procedures, saying it will not slow down airport security lines. American Airlines says the new procedures requiring passengers to remove anything larger than a cellphone from carry-on luggage have already tested in Los Angeles and Phoenix with little delay.
The TSA will soon ask all domestic passengers to remove tablets, e-readers and laptops to be screened separately. The problem is bags filled with electronics and wires show up as a black blob on xray machines.
“A clear path to encourage airlines and airports to adopt more sophisticated screening approaches,” explained Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly last month.
Kelly told the group how the TSA and FBI developed an explosive laptop similar to what terrorists are using.
“We tested it on a real airlplane, on the ground, pressurized, and to say the least it destroyed the airplane,” he said. “They would like to knock down a U.S. airplane in flight on the way to the United States, that's the Stanley Cup or World Series.”
No word yet when the new security procedures will be in place at Houston's Bush and Hobby airports.