Taking off Travel blog

Early this week, I enjoyed a post on Smart Money titled 10 Things the TSA Won’t Tell You. This gives you views from the TSA and their critics about issues such as security (too much or not enough?); researching the tools they use; what officials really think about pat downs; scanner safety; cargo and staff screening; the role of private security and more.

For example, did you know that there’s a lot of theft at US airports – and some of that has been by TSA employees. Don’t worry, they were fired as the TSA won’t tolerate that.

In other TSA news, the organization’s blog says that despite the death of Osama bin Laden, the threat of terrorism is “very much alive”. That means security restrictions will stay in force :

“Passengers may continue to notice a variety of security measures at U.S. airports to include the use of physical bag checks, random gate screening, explosives detection technology, canine teams and behavior detection officers.”

When I asked a few months ago about the biggest worry with TSA body scanners at airports,  I wondered whether the privacy issues was less of a concern than possible radiation health risks. The latest announcement from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) suggests that this was a valid concern.

According to USA Today, the TSA has announced that it will retest the 247 full body scanners at 38 airports.  The report states: “maintenance records on some of the devices showed radiation levels 10 times higher than expected.”  According to the TSA, the machines are safe, but the retests are to reassure the public.  The higher than expected levels reported, says the TSA, are more likely due to reporting errors than actual increases in radiation.  Feel better now? I don’t either, as it raises concerns about the robustness of the maintenance and reporting process. What do you think?

Are you for or against the use of full body scanners at airports? A storm has brewed up (and mostly died down again) over the last few weeks as people weighed the merits of privacy over security. One artist, though, has made his feelings on the matter pretty clear, with a design titled ‘Land of the Free’ available on Threadless. If you want to know what the Statue of Liberty might look like when going through an airport body scanner, this T-shirt will tell you. Artist voyetra8 says:

‘Lady Liberty gets the TSA “backscatter” treatment. This image was created to protest the recently enacted and maximally-invasive TSA screening procedures.’

Land of the Free T-shirt by voyetra8

Is there any point in being worried? There are two issues to consider. First, there’s the addition of another layer of security without which you won’t be able to travel. Travel these days often consists of going from line to line to comply with all the requirements, and it can be wearing. There are also concerns that the time taken to process each passenger might increase with the technology currently being used.

Second, there’s privacy. Whether they are using the millimeter wave or backscatter technology, the fact is that a whole body scan feels invasive to many people (if you don’t believe me, think how uncomfortable some people get if they have to have an MRI scan).  There is also technology that produces a generic human image – it’s called Automated Target Recognition and could make those privacy worries a thing of the past.

Call me weird, but I’m not spending a lot of time thinking about either of those issues. After all, if I travel through an airport where that’s the scanner of choice, then I’ll have to do it anyway. However, as a frequent traveler, I am worried about potential radiation health risks. I’d like to see more research proving that these are safe before being forced to comply every time I fly. What about you?

Resources:

How to Prepare for a TSA Body Scan or Pat Down

Suitcase.com has recently published its Consumer Luggage Report 2010. Among its key findings were:

57.4% are now packing lighter and using smaller travel bags, and 56.5% check fewer bags, due to increasing airline fees and restrictions.

72.3% most commonly use carry-on bags during air travel.

79.1% consider luggage size and dimensions the greatest influence on their decision to purchase, with luggage weight (69.3%) the second-most deciding factor.

44.2% prefer lightweight materials the most when purchasing luggage.

88.9% consider wheels the most important luggage feature, with retractable handles (71.4%) the second-most important feature.

The Taking Off Travel Blog talked to John Ebb, CEO of Suitcase.com, about the findings, especially related to business travel.

1. John, what can we learn about business travel behavior from your Luggage Trends survey?

Based on the survey results from those travelers who stated they fly for business more than 50% of the time (with the majority taking more than 10 trips a year) now use lighter, smaller suitcases (61.5%), and check fewer bags (53.8%) than in previous years. In addition, these business travelers use carry‐ons 79.4% of the time.

What are the latest luggage trends?

When purchasing luggage, these business travelers consider luggage size and weight (89.7%) the greatest influence on their luggage purchases, with specialized luggage features and functionality (73%) the second‐most important factor and luggage weight (71.7%) the third factor.

Many of these business travelers included in their responses that they seek the added features and functionality of durable wheels (91%) and retractable handles (71.7%), when purchasing luggage. Several responses also mentioned preferring to switch their airlines to one without baggage fees, such as Southwest Airlines, rather than bringing different luggage. Read more »