Tighter airport security eases fear of flying

BANGOR – Nearly two hours before their 10 a.m. flight to Syracuse, N.Y., Ron and Louise Newcomb dutifully – but distractedly – peruse their magazines in the first-floor terminal at Bangor International Airport.

The recommended two-hour lead time before a scheduled departure – an industry standard since the unprecedented tightening of airport security in the aftermath of the infamous Sept. 11 terrorist hijackings – is one of the more direct changes for passengers, who by and large, have come to accept the new rules.

“It’s hurry up and wait,” said Ron Newcomb, 64, a retired shoe designer. “But that’s the way it’s always been with air travel.”

The waiting is one of the few things that has remained the same since 9-11.

Entering BIA, cabdrivers park at the far end of the terminal rather than directly in front of the doors as they had done before the Federal Aviation Administration imposed the restriction.

Prominently displayed signs now warn against leaving unattended vehicles in front of the terminal, and short-term parking spaces that once lined the entrance are blocked off with orange plastic barrels.

“That won’t fly,” a BIA operator recently told a man inquiring by telephone whether he could briefly park his car outside the airport’s main entrance to run inside and find his wife and her luggage.

Inside BIA, metal detector-wielding security officers still confiscate fingernail clippers and baby forks from some unsuspecting passengers. Visitors are not allowed into the boarding area, and passengers are routinely asked to remove their shoes and belts.

But not all the initial precautions are still in place.

Outside, motorists now can stop briefly outside the terminal to drop off passengers and luggage as long as someone remains with the car.

National Guardsmen, who – armed with automatic weapons – once monitored security checkpoints are nowhere to be seen, although there remains an increased police presence.

Boarding passengers can again take covered beverages, such as coffee, through the checkpoint. The earlier prohibition was particularly unpopular, according to BIA director Rebecca Hupp.

At BIA, where federal authorities assumed responsibility for passenger screening Sept. 4, Hupp said there is still much to be done – including a potentially costly upgrade of baggage screening equipment – before the Dec. 31 congressional deadline for the total federal takeover.

When all is said and done, passengers should take comfort in the improved security, Hupp said.

“Fear is an irrational emotion,” Hupp said. “There are security measures in place, and people should feel comfortable traveling.”

The Newcombs did before their recent trip.

“Initially, we probably wouldn’t have flown at all,” said Louise Newcomb, also 64, of the time immediately after the 9-11 attacks. “But now, with all the security, I’m not so worried.”

For agents with the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service, their job hasn’t changed since Sept. 11, but their focus has, according to William Trahan, INS port director at Houlton.

The INS is responsible for people entering the United States.

“The intent of the job hasn’t changed, but we’re more directed in what we’re doing,” Trahan said, noting that more emphasis has been placed on anti-terrorism activities.

The U.S. Customs Service, which deals with goods brought into the country, has installed gates at several remote border crossings in Aroostook and Washington counties.

The gates, which have not yet been activated, will be used after hours when those ports of entry are closed. Those ports will remain staffed.

NEWS reporter Wayne Brown contributed to this report.