X-ray tech debuts at Sky Harbor

Happy holidays from Homeland Security. An X-ray machine aimed at detecting weapons and explosives hidden on passengers is targeted to arrive at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport before the Christmas crunch.

It will be the one and only machine used in the nation in the pilot project.

Dubbed “backscatter,” the X-ray technology, which was developed for prisons, has been modified so private body parts are blurred in the airport version, said Nico Melendez, spokesman for the Transportation Security Administration, the government agency that oversees airport checkpoints.

Besides, only those who don’t pass the regular screening process will get to try out the new technology, and they could opt for a pat down instead, he said.

And just to be extra sure nobody gets an X-rated view, the backscatter will be set up away from the through traffic, and the screen viewer will be in a private room 50 to 100 feet away, Melendez said.

Not that there is much titillating to see, according to Melendez. In fact, while the backscatter visually strips off clothing, the image it projects looks more like a chalk drawing than a real person.

That’s the idea, Melendez said.

“We’re able to see what we need to see but not what you don’t want us to see,” he said. “We’ve been working on this for three years, but delayed (using it) because of privacy concerns.”

Those concerns caused a firestorm Friday when a national publication printed graphic images produced by technology in use three years ago. Those images are much more detailed than what the new backscatter produces, Melendez said.

In fact, the airport backscatter will only detect whether there is something besides clothing on the body after a person has been asked to empty pockets, but it can’t even distinguish a pack of cigarettes from a block of explosives, Melendez said. A personal search will still be required if the backscatter fi nds something.

“If a person is bringing a pack of cigarettes (on board), it wouldn’t be taped to his torso,” he said.

If nothing is detected during a backscatter scan, the TSA officer won’t save, print or transmit the images, Melendez said.

Melendez also addressed another potential concern of frequent fl iers — the fear of too many X-ray doses. The radiation from a backscatter is minimal, about the same amount an air passenger would soak up during an hour in fl ight just from a plane’s radar equipment, he said,

The nation’s fi rst backscatter will be installed at Sky Harbor sometime before Christmas, Melendez said.

If it’s a hit, the TSA will install backscatters at other airports next year, but there are no specifi c national rollout plans, he said.

TSA, not airport offi cials, chose Sky Harbor to pilot the backscatter, said Deborah Ostreicher, Sky Harbor deputy aviation director. She wasn’t surprised by the choice.

“We are one of the busiest airports in the world, we have newly remodeled checkpoints, and a lot of throughput,” she said.

In fact, Sky Harbor averages 75,000 to 100,000 passengers a day, with an expected surge to 150,000 to 200,000 a day during the holidays, she said.

The backscatter shouldn’t hold up holiday traffi c, since it only takes 15 to 20 seconds, even faster than the alternative pat down, Melendez said. Air passengers don’t seem to be intimidated by the technology. “I don’t care,” said Justin Holmes of Chandler. His mother, Kathy Wilken of Illinois, is a frequent flier, and she thinks the backscatter is a good idea. “It wouldn’t bother me a bit. I want to feel safe when I fly,” Wilken said. Kira Lindo of Phoenix said if an alarm is triggered during a simple screening, a closer look via X-ray is “within reason.” But Brian Davis of Scottsdale said he’d probably opt for a pat down if he triggered an alarm. “My only concern is radiation,” Davis said. “Why get extra radiation if you don’t have to.”