Turbans won't be subject to pat-down, TSA says

Washington: Turban-wearers have won the day. Beginning Oct. 27, airport screeners no longer will "pat down" people wearing religious head coverings, if the traveler agrees to undergo alternative security measures. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officials said such alternatives might include walking through a machine that detects explosive chemicals. Or wearers could agree to pat down their own turban and have their hands swabbed with a cloth that is tested for chemical traces.
"It's a creative solution that meets national-security interests without requiring a turban to be touched in an unwelcome way," said Amardeep Singh, executive director of the New York-based Sikh Coalition, a national advocacy group.
The compromise between advocacy groups representing Sikhs and Muslims and the TSA, which oversees the nation's 43,000 airport screeners, was described by all parties Wednesday as mutually satisfactory.
Sikhs and some Muslim groups had balked at an Aug. 4 TSA directive advising screeners to scrutinize anyone wearing a head covering or bulky clothes that might hide explosives — be it a turban, baseball cap or beret. The directive was prompted by growing concerns about explosive devices being smuggled aboard commercial aircraft.
18/10/07 Carol Eisenberg/Newsday/Seattle Times, United States

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Categories: Airports Oct 2007, Foreign Oct 2007, Safety Oct 2007