Ark. Airport Panel Votes to Change Canine Contract

Officials with the state's largest airport on Friday decided to alter a security contract to eliminate a provision requiring explosive-detection dogs, acknowledging afterward that their sense of timing was awkward.

The move will save about $600,000 annually, but it came a little more than a week after British authorities announced they thwarted an attempt to blow up as many as 10 airliners flying between Britain and the United States, forcing airports nationwide to ratchet up security.

"The timing here is just not real good with recent developments," said Tom Schueck, the only member of the Little Rock Municipal Airport Commission at Friday's monthly meeting to vote against eliminating the dogs on Oct. 1.

But some of the other six commission members said the Transportation Security Administration has three agencytrained dogs assigned to Little Rock National Airport, Adams Field, at no expense. In addition, airport staff said no other U.S. airport employs private dogs for security searches.

"We're not without dogs out here," said commission member Larry Lichty, who made the motion to eliminate the private security dogs.

Federal K-9 Security Agency dogs have been operating at the airport since November 2004. They are frequently seen at the entrances to the short-term parking lots, where they display their expertise inspecting cars without the guard having to open the trunks.

The company has been paid $1.5 million through July to provide guard and canine services at six outside posts and one inside post with guard-only services.

The company is providing about 133 hours a day, or 48,545 hours a year, of security-guard services at the rate of $17.50 per hour. That covers combined guard and canine services at the six outside posts and a supervisory-level employee at the one inside post, according to the executive summary of the contract prepared by airport staff.

Under Transportation Security Administration regulations, only three of the posts require guards. The agency requires no explosivedetection dogs at any of the posts, according to airport officials.

Airport officials acknowledge that no way exists to measure the effectiveness of dogs. Though the dogs have sniffed out firearms and ammunition, they have never found an explosive device at the airport.

But even if they never find one, the dogs have an important role, said the airport's top official, who acknowledged that the staff was split on whether the dogs were cost-effective.

"The dogs serve as a deterrent," said Deborah Schwartz, the airport executive director.

Schueck also expressed concern that materials such as those reportedly to be used in the latest bomb plot can't be detected by the explosive-detection equipment that Little Rock National and other airports use. Schueck said he's read that dogs can detect explosive material made from common household products.

The founder of Federal K-9, David Martin of Little Rock, said his dogs are trained in "a dozen different chemicals common in virtually all explosives. Within these [common household chemicals] are some other chemicals that the dogs are trained on. That's why they're so useful." Scaling back on the private security guard contract comes as the commission is searching for more money to pay for a new main passenger terminal still being developed. Its estimated cost is $250 million. Schwartz distributed a memorandum Friday that said the airport could count on about $50 million being available from projected revenues over the next decade.

Also Friday, the commission declined to approve a proposed $125,000 budget for an air show the airport staff is planning for next year. An air show the airport held earlier this year attracted some sponsor money but not enough to absorb the air show's full cost.Commission members wanted to see if the staff could attract sponsors before supporting the budget request, especially after cutting back on security.

"It's a good public relations move," Gene Fortson, the committee chairman, said of the air show. "But it's terrible timing."

This article was published 08/19/2006

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