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Charter security checks delayed
©Associated Press WASHINGTON -- The government has postponed a requirement that the New York Yankees, Boston Pops Orchestra, Rolling Stones and anybody else on a large private charter plane undergo security checks, just like passengers on commercial flights. The charter industry, which opposed the requirement brought on by the Sept. 11 attacks, lobbied hard. And on Friday, the Transportation Security Administration agreed to push back the deadline. The rule will take effect Oct. 18, 60 days after the original deadline of Monday. "There must be some security program in place," agency spokesman Greg Warren said. "We're still working on what that security program is." The requirement will apply only to planes weighing 95,000 pounds or more, hired for flights not advertised to the public. The government estimates the rule will apply to about 70 charter companies that fly sports teams, corporations and performing artists such as large rock 'n' roll tours, symphony orchestras and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. Ross Fisher, president of Miami Air International Inc., said the delay is welcome news. "We were petrified because we thought everything had to be in place by Monday," said Fisher, whose company carries pro sports teams including the Chicago Bulls, Cincinnati Reds, Carolina Panthers and Florida Marlins. Southeast Airlines of Largo charters a 56-seat Boeing 727 to fly college basketball and other sports teams, said Gary Pastorella, marketing and sales vice president. They typically use general aviation terminals run by companies called "fixed base operators" to avoid crowds and hassles, he said. "In most cases, the FBOs aren't set up to (screen passengers), and they'll have to use the regular terminals,'" he said. "If you've got a band group or team, these people don't pose a security problem. They're not on a watch list or no-fly list." The rule states the program must include screening passengers and their baggage, use of metal detection devices and X-ray systems, security coordinators and training for security coordinators and crew. The private charter industry will continue to lobby against the regulation, claiming it's too expensive to install bomb-detection machines at many of the small airports where private charters land and take off. "There's no way (the airports) could afford to lease those machines," said Emilio Dirube, director of sales at Falcon Air Express, which flies Florida Atlantic University's Fighting Owls football team. The alternative is for charters to use commercial airports, said James Coyne, president of the National Air Transportation Association. He does not see that as a viable option. "A lot of these real famous football, basketball, baseball players getting off at Gate C33 and marching through the regular terminal?" he said. "They see it as distractive and creating another security risk." He thinks adding more security to a private charter is overkill. "These are the most closely guarded planes, short of Air Force One, on the planet," he said. The National Hockey League and other major league sports leagues also are urging the TSA to scrap the rule. Tony Beadle, manager of the Boston Pops Orchestra, said the rule would be another scheduling obstacle to musicians who travel to a different city every day. "I'm in the position of making sure everyone's rested and ready to perform. This does not help," he said. "But if we have to, we have to." -- Times staff writer Steve Huettel contributed to this report.
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From the Times Business report
From the AP
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