Scanner Uproar Shadows Holiday Travel as Fliers Crowd Airports

By Mary Schlangenstein and Juliann Neher - Nov 24, 2010 12:01 AM ET
Bloomberg
Nov. 24, 2010

Thanksgiving holiday travelers jamming into U.S. airports will provide the biggest test yet of the government’s body scanners and physical pat-downs criticized by some fliers as a danger to health and an invasion of privacy.

Airports and airlines are stepping up staffing amid concern that protests of the new procedures may snarl Transportation Security Administration checkpoints. With more than 2 million people boarding planes, today will be one of this year’s busiest air-travel days, according to the Air Transport Association.

Protest organizers are urging fliers to decline a full-body scan and instead undergo an extensive pat-down, a process that would slow screening if many travelers participate. While fewer than a fifth of the security lanes at U.S. airports have the devices, reducing the likelihood of widespread disruptions, officials are bracing for possible tie-ups at some locations.

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