TSA Delays Cargo Worker Background Checks

The U.S. Transportation Security Administration is months behind in its mandatory screening program for airline cargo handlers, it was reported.

The TSA said it was unable to meet some of the deadlines in the air cargo handlers’ final rules because of the number of people involved, New York’s Newsday reported. The rules, originally effective from Oct. 23 to Dec. 1, required background checks and security training for an estimated 50,000 workers employed by airlines or airline contractors.

TSA said the new time line pushes several deadlines into mid-2007 and opens a new round of public comment that could lead to more changes, Newsday said.

Air cargo has been described as a weak link in aviation security because items loaded into planes face less scrutiny than passengers and luggage, Newsday said.

Isaac Yeffet, a former security chief for Israel’s El Al Airlines and now a private consultant, criticized the TSA for the delay. Yeffet cited a recently leaked report in which undercover agents said they smuggled prohibited items past TSA screeners at Newark (N.J.) International Airport in 20 of 22 attempts.