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Airport News, "Massport: Logan safety record typical"
Monday, September 20, 1999
Massport: Logan safety record typical
By Joanna Weiss, Boston Globe Staff
Though Federal Aviation Administration records show repeated security
breaches at Logan International Airport over the last two years,
Massachusetts Port Authority officials yesterday insisted Logan remains safe
for passengers.
Massport Aviation Director Tom Kinton told reporters following an article in
yesterday's Globe about security weaknesses, that airport security checks
are routine. He said Logan's security record is typical of major airports.
Said Massport's official spokesman, Jose Juves, ''Other airports fall within
the same range. This is not unusual.''
The FAA records, obtained by the Globe, show that the agency found at least
136 security violations at Logan from 1997 through the beginning of this
year. The FAA fined Massport and major airlines $178,000 during that period.
Records show that agents were able to board airplanes parked at gates
overnight and to walk through doors to restricted areas without being
questioned by airport personnel. Records also show that airport security
workers often failed to hand-search bags or to use costly
explosive-detection devices.
Massport, which owns and operates Logan, oversees the airport perimeter and
is responsible for security on the airfield and in terminal space that is
not controlled by the airlines. Airlines are responsible for screening
passengers and baggage, and for maintaining security around their airplanes.
Juves said at least one of the reported violations - in which agents found a
combination to a coded lock taped to a door - is no longer possible, because
the airport replaced those doors with doors that require cards with code
numbers. He said Massport works with the FAA and airlines to do its security
checks.
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