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American Morning
Who's Checking Your Bags?
Aired December 19, 2002 - 08:32 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: New rules on baggage screening at airports will be announced today. Beginning next year, your bags could be searched by hand and you may not know anything about it.
Let's go to John Zarrella, who's standing by at Florida's Jacksonville International Airport to fill us in.
Good morning, John.
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Paula.
That's exactly right. So if you or anyone is planning a trip sometime at the end of December, into January, be ready. We're here at one of the Jacksonville International Concourses, where you know, the Transportation Security Administration's focus during the first year or so since 9/11 has been on the checkpoints and screening of hand-carried luggage. But now, the emphasis is beginning to shift, behind the scenes in many cases, at most of the 429 airports nationwide. But it won't be the case at every airport. A lot of new explosive detection machines are in place, ready to go. They are here at Jacksonville. There will be a variety of measures where all, 100 percent of all the one billion bags a year that travel are going to be inspected or could be inspected with the new machines.
The problem is, the machines are not 100 percent accurate. For example, I have my holiday fruitcake here. So if you're taking a fruitcake, the density of this fruitcake could set the machine off, which then means your bag might be subject to a hand inspection, which means it might have to be opened.
What the Transportation Security Administration will announce today is they longer want passengers to lock their bags. What they are going to do is give you, at curbside, one of these little tags to put on your bag. You will lock it, put it on your bag, and then your bag will go away to be inspected.
If they do open your bag to check it, for whatever reason, they will put this card inside your bag to say that they did it, then they will put another colored tag on your bag and away it will go. So that's what the plan is right now for how it's going to operate. A lot of questions although, Paula, about liability, who's responsible, if things are stolen. Those questions we hope to have answered later today in about half an hour or so at a press conference here at Jacksonville Airport -- Paula.
ZAHN: Striking that people will be a lot more judicious about what they pack if they are going to be embarrassed by anything in their bags. We think you are a nice guy, so will have to share the fruitcake for folks who will be hand-checking your bags.
John, happy holidays.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired December 19, 2002 - 08:32 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: New rules on baggage screening at airports will be announced today. Beginning next year, your bags could be searched by hand and you may not know anything about it.
Let's go to John Zarrella, who's standing by at Florida's Jacksonville International Airport to fill us in.
Good morning, John.
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Paula.
That's exactly right. So if you or anyone is planning a trip sometime at the end of December, into January, be ready. We're here at one of the Jacksonville International Concourses, where you know, the Transportation Security Administration's focus during the first year or so since 9/11 has been on the checkpoints and screening of hand-carried luggage. But now, the emphasis is beginning to shift, behind the scenes in many cases, at most of the 429 airports nationwide. But it won't be the case at every airport. A lot of new explosive detection machines are in place, ready to go. They are here at Jacksonville. There will be a variety of measures where all, 100 percent of all the one billion bags a year that travel are going to be inspected or could be inspected with the new machines.
The problem is, the machines are not 100 percent accurate. For example, I have my holiday fruitcake here. So if you're taking a fruitcake, the density of this fruitcake could set the machine off, which then means your bag might be subject to a hand inspection, which means it might have to be opened.
What the Transportation Security Administration will announce today is they longer want passengers to lock their bags. What they are going to do is give you, at curbside, one of these little tags to put on your bag. You will lock it, put it on your bag, and then your bag will go away to be inspected.
If they do open your bag to check it, for whatever reason, they will put this card inside your bag to say that they did it, then they will put another colored tag on your bag and away it will go. So that's what the plan is right now for how it's going to operate. A lot of questions although, Paula, about liability, who's responsible, if things are stolen. Those questions we hope to have answered later today in about half an hour or so at a press conference here at Jacksonville Airport -- Paula.
ZAHN: Striking that people will be a lot more judicious about what they pack if they are going to be embarrassed by anything in their bags. We think you are a nice guy, so will have to share the fruitcake for folks who will be hand-checking your bags.
John, happy holidays.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
