Security tools tested at Orlando

ORLANDO, Fla. -- High-tech bomb detectors, full-body X-ray scanners and other next-generation security devices are getting a trial run as possible tools for improving airport security.

The National Safe Skies Alliance said it will install five new security devices next month at a checkpoint at the Orlando International Airport. The airport, often mobbed with families headed to Disney World from points around the globe, is being used as a guinea pig to help officials figure out how to prevent terrorist attacks in the skies.

"We're trying to see how best to deploy these devices nationwide," said John Whittenburg, executive vice president of the National Safe Skies Alliance. "We want to do this in the quickest manner possible for passengers, as long as it doesn't diminish security."

The alliance is a nonprofit group responsible for testing airport security systems. It is funded by the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Federal Aviation Administration, along with the airlines, airports, security companies and other institutions that make up its membership.

Analyzing energy

One of the new devices, an explosives detector for carry-on bags, uses radio waves to create a magnetic field around the object being tested. That causes an outburst of energy, which is analyzed by the machine. Within seconds, an indicator light begins to flash -- green if the bag is clean, red if explosives are detected.

In another device, the subject of the test walks down a 30-inch corridor while being subjected to a shot of air. A vacuum captures and analyzes the air, looking for signs of explosives, flammable items or other hazardous materials.

An advanced metal detector being tested is designed to pinpoint the location of metal on anyone who sets off its alarm. It uses a camera hooked up to a computer, which outlines the metal on an image of the passenger's body.

A new type of X-ray machine for carry-on bags shoots rays from two locations instead of one, producing a three-dimensional image. And another X-ray device checks passengers -- who walk through the machine -- from head to toe.

"This isn't something that's going to be completely foreign, but it's going to be new for aviation," Whittenburg said.

Until this point, all five new devices have only been tested in laboratories.

Airport officials don't expect the testing of the devices to slow down passengers heading to their flights.

"We think it's going to enhance traffic because it's an additional checkpoint," said Brigitte Craig, director of security at Orlando International Airport.