This doesn’t sound particularly pleasant.
Airline passengers travelling to and from the United States are set to be subject to a very invasive physical screening procedure in the near future.
The Transport Security Administration (TSA) recently announced plans to introduce a more comprehensive security screening process at airports and, according to Bloomberg, they’ve even deemed it necessary to inform local police to be on alert for a greater number of complaints from passengers as a result.
“Passengers who have not previously experienced the now standardized pat-down screening may not realize that they did in fact receive the correct procedure, and may ask our partners, including law enforcement at the airport, about the procedure,” wrote TSA spokesman Bruce Anderson in an e-mail seen by Bloomberg News.
The ‘pat-down’ screening protocol on the TSA website informs passengers that it “may include inspection of the head, neck, arms, torso, legs, and feet”.
“This includes head coverings and sensitive areas such as breasts, groin, and the buttocks. You may be required to adjust clothing during the pat-down,” it adds.
Pat-downs, which are performed on passengers by officers of the same gender “require sufficient pressure to ensure detection” reads the TSA website and while officers use the back of the hands for pat-downs over sensitive areas of the body “additional screening involving a sensitive area pat-down with the front of the hand may be needed to determine that a threat does not exist” in limited cases.
Something worth bearing in mind if you’re heading Stateside anytime soon.
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