I was watching the news this morning about the Hizbollah rallies and they mentioned how El Al Airlines is going to be on high alert for terrorist threats. So I thought: I wonder how they deal with security?
From Wikipedia:
Airport security measures
Passengers are asked to report three hours before departure. All El Al terminals around the world are closely monitored for security. There are plain-clothes agents and fully armed police or military personnel who patrol the premises for explosives, suspicious behavior, and other threats. Inside the terminal, passengers and their baggage are checked by a trained team. El Al security procedures require that all passengers be interviewed individually prior to boarding, allowing El Al staff to identify possible security threats. Passengers will be asked questions about where they are coming from, the reason for their trip, their job or occupation, and whether they have packed their bags themselves. The likelihood of potential terrorists remaining calm under such questioning is believed to be low (see also Microexpression).[42] At the check-in counter the passengers' passports and tickets are closely examined. A ticket without a sticker from the security checkers will not be accepted. At passport control passengers' names are checked against information from the FBI, Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), Scotland Yard, Shin Bet, and Interpol databases. Luggage is screened and sometimes hand searched. In addition, bags are put through a decompression chamber simulating pressures during flight that could trigger explosives.[43] El Al is the only airline in the world that passes all luggage through such a chamber.[44] Even at overseas airports, El Al security agents conduct all luggage searches personally, even if they are supervised by government or private security firms.[45]
Flight security measures
Undercover agents (sometimes referred to as sky marshals) carrying concealed firearms sit amongst the passengers on every international El Al flight.[46] Most El Al pilots are former Israeli Air Force fighter pilots, and all El Al flight crew members are trained in hand-to-hand combat. Most El Al employees, male and female, have served in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), as Israeli citizens are drafted at the age of 18.[47]
The cockpits in all El Al aircraft have double doors to prevent entry by unauthorized persons. A code is required to access the doors, and the second door will only be opened after the first has closed and the person has been identified by the Captain or First Officer.[47] Furthermore, there are reinforced steel floors separating the passenger cabin from the baggage hold.[48] This is intended to strengthen the plane in case of an explosion.
Following an attempt to shoot down an Israeli airliner in 2002,[49] all aircraft in the fleet have been equipped with an infrared countermeasures system called 'Flight Guard', developed by Israeli Aerospace Industries to defend them against anti-aircraft missiles.[50][51] [52] Although comparable systems such as CAMPS are now available for civilian aircraft, there is no information to date about any other airlines deploying such a system. Switzerland and other European countries have expressed concern that flares dropped by the Israeli system could cause fires in the vicinity of an airport.[53] However none of the higher risk countries that the El Al aircraft fly to have raised any concerns.
That folks, is how it's done. There's no need to take your shoes off, or take your laptop out of your bag, or travel with only 3 oz sizes of toiletries, or anything else of that nature. Our security measures in the USA are for show only, and don't actually help secure anybody.
Will we see our country following El Al's example? Hell no! Do you realize how efficient, intelligent, and thorough our TSA would have to be to pull that off? Have you taken a look recently at the people we have working security at the airport? It's pathetic.
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