Nov. 5--Passengers flying out of the Tri-Cities Airport won't have to worry about their checked luggage being rummaged through by security agents any longer.
The Transportation Security Administration recently installed two of the latest explosives detection machines to scan luggage quickly.
Besides reducing the time it takes to check baggage, the machine also will help reduce complaints from passengers upset about the occasional missing items, said Cliff Odenkirk, TSA's assistant federal security director based in Pasco. It also means fewer bags will be opened for security checks, he said.
The machine takes 15 to 30 seconds to scan a piece of luggage. But golf kits, ski bags and baggage too large to go through the machine still will need to be checked by hand along with the bags flagged by the machine, Odenkirk said.
The new CT-80 machine, manufactured by Massachusetts-based Reveal Imaging Technologies, Inc., requires fewer people to monitor it than the number of workers required to manually check passengers' bags.
It can check 127 bags per hour, said company spokesman Gene Bellotti. The machines at Pasco are the latest and upgraded version of machines now being used at about 200 other airports, Bellotti said.
Both the machines will be fully operational before the holiday season begins, and as more security staff is trained to use them, Odenkirk said. It also will allow agents to be assigned to other duties at the airport, Odenkirk said. There won't be any job cuts, he said.
At Spokane International Airport, the installation of similar machines a few years ago helped reduce manual baggage checks, said Eric Meyer, TSA's customer service manager/stakeholder manager.
The federal government began the process of installing explosive detection systems at airports in 2003, said TSA spokesman Nico Melendez. The size of airports and the volume of traffic they deal with determine what kind of machines they get, he said.
About 20,000 passengers a month board planes at the Tri-Cities Airport, said Airport Director Jim Morasch.
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