El Al Wants To Do Own Bag Screening
El Al airlines, the flagship Israeli airline company, wants to do its own bag screening at Newark airport. They have an arrangement with government officials that affords them this capability at four other airports in the United States. What is interesting is the message that this sends to the public, our government and specifically the TSA.
“El Al knows our security isn’t worth a hoot,” said Michael Boyd, an aviation industry consultant and longtime TSA critic. “It’s a heck of an indictment for the TSA when a foreign airline says they want to screen their own luggage. It says they don’t trust us.”
In this day and age of 9/11 sensitivity, when a private airline company does not trust the TSA to perform quality baggage screening of its customers in order to ensure the safety and integrity of those passengers, there is a problem. This truly shows that the TSA is running around with its proverbial head cut off and is merely wasting our tax dollars, offering no substantial increase in security for the people that it is designed to protect.
Something needs to be done to mitigate these risks. Since the TSA is not up to the task, who is?