Welcome Guest   |  Login   |   Signup
JG Logo
Sat, May 26, 2012
Archive Search

British Airways Criticizes US Airport Screenings
October 27, 2010

Share This Page
0
0
0
0
Share with google+ :


Post a comment
Please login to post comment

Comments

Be the first to write your opinion!

London. The chairman of British Airways claims the United States is making excessive demands about screening airline passengers, including insisting on measures it does not require on US domestic flights.

BA chairman Martin Broughton complained specifically about separate checks for laptop computers and forcing people to take off their shoes, saying such measures are “completely redundant.”

“America does not do internally a lot of the things they demand that we do,” Broughton said. “We shouldn’t stand for that. We should say, ‘We’ll only do things which we consider to be essential and that you Americans also consider essential.”’

Broughton aired his complaints at the annual conference of the United Kingdom Airport Operators Association.

Broughton added British authorities should not “kowtow to the Americans every time they wanted something done.”

“We all know there’s quite a number of elements in the security program which are completely redundant and they should be sort out,” he said.

“Take the iPad: They still haven’t decided if it is a laptop or it isn’t a laptop. So some airports think you should take it out and some think you shouldn’t,” Broughton said.

Colin Matthews, chief executive of BAA which owns Heathrow airport, says security is subject to regulations set by United States, European and domestic authorities.

“There are some aspects which have been frustrating to everyone, but equally everyone understands we have to keep the passenger safe,” Matthews said.

Mike Carrivick, chief executive of the Board of Airline Representatives in Britain joined the call for a security rethink.

“Every time there is a new security scare, an extra layer is added on to procedures,” Carrivick said on Wednesday.

“We need to step back and have a look at the whole situation. Standards change fairly regularly and this puts pressure on airports and airlines,” Carrivick said.

“We need to decide what we are trying to do and how best to do it.”
 

Associated Press