As the Department of Homeland Security ramps up deployment of advanced imaging technology as the primary screening devices at major U.S. airports, the department has yet to complete the cost-benefit analysis and it remains unclear whether the checkpoint screening systems would have even detected the incident that hastened their rollout—the failed attempt by a passenger to detonate explosives on a Northwest Airlines flight bound for Detroit—according to a U.S. Government Accountability Office report made public this week.
Prior to the explosives attempt on that Christmas-day flight, DHS had deployed 40 advanced imaging technology screening devices to 19 airports, where they served not as the primary checkpoint device, but as an alternative to secondary screenings and an alternative for pat-downs. By the end of 2014, however, DHS plans to have deployed 1,800 units to the majority of checkpoint lanes at the largest airports in the United States. There, they will serve as the primary screening device, according to the report.
That rapid rollout already has begun. DHS earlier this month said it is using stimulus funds to accelerate the deployment of advanced imaging technology screening systems at 11 airports by the start of summer, and deploy a total of 450 units by year-end across other yet-to-be disclosed airports
(BTNonline, March 5).
DHS is expanding the technology that it claims bolsters security with the capability of imaging objects concealed under clothing despite privacy concerns. GAO in its report confirmed that the imaging screeners "performed as well as physical pat-downs in operations tests."
Despite GAO recommendations last year, the Transportation Security Administration "has not conducted a cost-benefit analysis of the original deployment strategy or the revised AIT deployment strategy, which proposes a more than twofold increase in the number of machines to be procured," GAO said.
The cost is the known quantity. Citing TSA officials, GAO said the expense for each device is $170,000, but that excludes "training, installation and maintenance costs." TSA said that along with the technology, it also would have to deploy more employees, since "three full-time equivalents are needed to operate each unit." GAO found that staffing expenses "could add up to $2.4 billion over its expected service life," the report noted.
GAO concluded, "While we recognize that TSA is taking action to address a vulnerability of the passenger checkpoint exposed by the Dec. 25, 2009, attempted attack, we continue to believe that, given TSA's expanded deployment strategy, conducting a cost-benefit analysis of TSA's AIT deployment is important. An updated cost-benefit analysis would help inform TSA's judgment about the optimal deployment strategy for the AITs, as well as provide information to inform the best path forward, considering all elements of the screening system, for addressing the vulnerability identified by this attempted terrorist attack."