MPR: Ventura agrees to Guard troops at airport

Ventura agrees to Guard troops at airport
By Mark Zdechlik
Minnesota Public Radio
September 27, 2001

The president announced his program at a pep-rally style event at O'Hare International Airport 16 days after suicide hijackers slammed jetliners into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Listen to the audio of President Bush's speech in Chicago.
(Photo courtesy of the White House)

THE PLAN
      Air marshals: Continue expansion of the air marshal program and seek congressional approval to make the expansion permanent.
      Airplane modifications: A $500 million grant to modify planes to restrict opening of the cockpit door during flight; fortify cockpit doors to deny access from the cabin to the pilots; develop video camera technology that would alert cockpit crew to unusual activity in the cabin; ensure continuous operation of the aircraft transponder, which allows controllers to track a plane, during an emergency.
      Airport security: Federal government to be in charge, establishing new standards for security operations; supervising passenger and baggage security at the 420 commercial passenger airports; performing intensive background checks and training and testing screeners and security personnel; buying and maintaining all equipment; overseeing patrolling of secure areas and monitoring of the quality of the airport's access controls; and working with other law enforcement authorities at the federal, state and local levels.
      Security workers will include a combination of federal and nonfederal personnel, with federal uniformed employees managing all operations and maintaining a visible presence at all commercial airports.
      National Guard will have a presence at all commercial airports after receiving training in airport security techniques from the Federal Aviation Administration.

Visitors to the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport will soon see Minnesota National Guard troops helping with any number of security jobs. President Bush has called on the nation's governor's to deploy National Guard troops at airports through the country. Gov. Jesse Ventura thinks it's a good idea that'll improve security and help put nervous travelers at ease.

IT'S UNCLEAR HOW MANY Minnesota National Guard troops will be called upon to help at the Minneapolis St. Paul International Airport or exactly what types of things guard members will do. It's apparent through, the move is intended to boost public confidence in the nation's aviation system as much as it's intended to further secure it.

Bush's plan envisions stationing 4,000-5,000 troops at the nation's 420 commercial airports for up to six months while the federal government prepares to step in. Also, many more in-flight air marshals would be trained and a federal agency would be set up to oversee the screening of passengers and luggage.

The president announced his program at a pep-rally style event at O'Hare International Airport 16 days after suicide hijackers slammed jetliners into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

The president's proposal stopped short of assigning federal workers to perform security duties at airports, as is done in some other countries. The U.S. Conference of Mayors said Bush hadn't gone far enough, and appointed a task force, led by Los Angeles Mayor Jim Hahn, to come up with further security measures.

Gov. Jesse Ventura welcomed Bush's initiative. Ventura says he thinks the Guard's presence will go a long way toward reassuring weary travelers. "I'll make me feel better knowing that they're there, and I think most Minnesotans should feel the same way. We have the best National Guard in America and they stand ready and are doing their jobs," Ventura said during a visit in Rochester Thursday.

Even with dramatically scaled back flight schedules, large and small airlines report many empty seats. There are nowhere near enough passengers to make money. Airlines have laid off hundreds of thousand of employees because of plunging passenger numbers.

Northwest Airlines spokesman Kurt Ebenhoch says with only about half of the seats on any given Northwest flight full, any and all ideas to bring back travelers are welcome. "Anything that can be done to make the traveling public feel more comfortable and confident in their flying experience is something we're very supportive of," he said.

There are about 12,000 Minnesota National Guard members. About 400 of them, according to Guard officials, are specially trained for security and police operations.

Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport Deputy Director of Operations Tim Anderson says it's premature to speculate about how many members of the Guard members might be called upon for assistance, but he says since September 11th, airport police have been working a lot of overtime, racking up about $40,000 in overtime expenses a week. Already the airport has been looking toward neighboring communities for police assistance.

Anderson says Guard troops could help in many ways. "We have additional patrols responsibility in the terminal building and outside the terminal building beyond the norm. Potentially additional inspections of vehicles, those kinds of things that we may have to do and are doing that are going to be labor intensive and we'll definitely be needing some help in that area," he said.

"I think the key to getting people back flying again is they want to feel secure. Boosting security at airport terminals and on the place itself is going to be a big factor in getting people back up in the air again," Dale Gooden of St. Paul said.
(MPR Photo/Mark Zdechlik)

Officials acknowledge, however, that having troops around the airport may be something of a double-edged sword. Such a military presence is commonplace at airports all over the world but not in the United States and it could add to concerns about flying.

However an informal sampling of Minnesotans in downtown St. Paul found unanimous support for the idea. "I think the key to getting people back flying again is they want to feel secure. Boosting security at airport terminals and on the place itself is going to be a big factor in getting people back up in the air again," Dale Gooden of St. Paul said.

Patty Werrell says having the National Guard presence will likely help Americans do what leaders like President Bush are asking them to do. "They keep on saying, 'Let's not let things stop us from our everyday lives,' and I think we are letting it at this point and if that's what's going to help people feel confident to be able to travel again then that's what's needed," she said. There is no word on when the National Guard will be deployed at the airport.

More Information
Listen to the September 24th edition of MPR's Midday. Host Gary Eichten discusses aviation security with Capt. Steve Luckey, a retired Northwest Airlines pilot, who chairs the Airline Pilots' Association's National Security Committee.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

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