Israel Matzav

European Union to profile passengers at airports?

Due to an epidemic of false alarms, the European Union has asked the Technion in Haifa for help with airport security. And they're willing to pay for the help: $4.7 million over three years.

The grant is aimed at developing both a dynamic and realistic model for behavior and decision-making during security threats in airports.

Professor Avi Kirschenbaum, a member of the Technion directorate, said that although security measures focus on technology, the researchers will concentrate on human resources.

“It already has been discovered in 250 observation studies that improper preparation has caused dozens of false alarms, causing unnecessary panic and a waste of manpower and time," he said.

By examining airports throughout Europe and focusing on key decision-making groups such as control tower operators, security employees, service vendors and passengers, BEMOSA will create a basis for a comprehensive and practical training program that considers all airport security factors.

The EU noted that clear and practical procedures are required because “there is no time to seek advice and read procedural instructions” during critical moments of an emergency. “In order to prevent tragedies and deal with them better, we have to ensure that all of the airport terms, and not just those involved in security, are prepared,” the EU added.

Here in Israel, as I have discussed many times, security profiles passengers at the airport and picks out passengers for extra scrutiny on that basis. What will the Europeans do if they are told to profile passengers to uncover terrorists? Would they do something that is so politically incorrect? Hmmm.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 6:44 AM