Lowly paid airport screeners found 'unsatisfactory'

BALTIMORE (CNN) -- The hostage situation at John F. Kennedy International Airport this week drew attention to the role of screeners, airport workers who are often paid no more than minimum wage to intercept weapons and explosives.

In a 1987 test by the Federal Aviation Administration, screeners missed 20 percent of potentially dangerous objects.

ALSO Psychiatric exam ordered for accused N.Y. airline hostage-taker    VIDEO CNN Justice Correspondent Pierre Thomas reports on the role of screeners in airport security Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)     MESSAGE BOARD Air safety

About $350 million has since been spent on upgrading security at United States airports, and while some of the money has gone into the training of screeners, a report this year concluded their performance remained unsatisfactory.

The report's finding came in spite of the fact that screeners seized nearly 1,600 guns last year.

Between 1990 and 1999, screeners detected nearly 23,000 guns and scores of explosives, leading to 9,400 arrests, according to the General Accounting Office, the investigative arm of the United States Congress.

Many of the security stops were benign, sometimes snaring police and military.

"Unfortunately, from time to time, with the high number of passengers who come through here, they're just not aware of what may be misinterpreted as a threat," said Baltimore Washington International Airport spokesman John White.

In the Thursday's night hostage standoff at Kennedy, authorities said the gunman waved his weapon at security personnel as he ran around the screening machines.

Government reports criticize U.S. airport security measures
March 16, 2000

Federal Aviation Administration
The United States General Accounting Office

Note: Pages will open in a new browser window

External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.