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Airport security not so hot: report

Airport security lines can annoy passengers, but there is no evidence that they make flying any safer, US researchers reported on Thursday.

A team at the Harvard School of Public Health could not find any studies showing whether the time-consuming process of X-raying carry-on luggage prevents attacks.

They also found no evidence to suggest that making passengers take off their shoes and confiscating items prevented any incidents.

The US Transportation Security Administration told research teams requesting information that their need for quick new security measures trumped the usefulness of evaluating them, Eleni Linos, Elizabeth Linos and Graham Colditz reported in the British Medical Journal.

"We noticed that new airport screening protocols were implemented immediately after news reports of terror threats," they wrote.

"Even without clear evidence of the accuracy of testing, the Transportation Security Administration defended its measures by reporting that more than 13 million prohibited items were intercepted in one year," the researchers said. "Most of these illegal items were lighters."

"We'd like airport security screening to be of value. As passengers and members of the public we'd like to know the evidence and the reasoning behind these measures," Linos said in an interview.

"Can you hide anything in your shoes that you cannot hide in your underwear?" they asked.

With US$5.6 billion spent globally on airport protection each year, the public should be encouraged to query some screening requirements -- such as forcing passengers to remove their shoes, the researchers said.

TSA spokesman Christopher White said the agency has pictures of shoe bombs on its Web site at www.tsa.gov and welcomes people to examine them.

"We encourage a legitimate public dialogue. We want passengers to understand why we do what we do," he said.

Meanwhile, In a victory for air travelers, a federal judge in Albany, New York, upheld on Thursday a state law that would penalize airlines that fail to provide adequate services to passengers trapped on the tarmac for more than three hours.

The decision, which the Air Transport Association, an airline industry group, opposed, paves the way for other states to write similar laws. It also means that beginning Jan. 1, airlines operating in New York can be fined up to US$1,000 a passenger if they do not supply water, fresh air, power and working restrooms during lengthy delays.
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