The addition of photographs and fingerprinting took a little longer, but travelers didn't seem to mind.
By BRADY DENNIS
Published January 7, 2004
TAMPA - Brothers Abdullah and Saif Enany, ages 18 and 16, have grown used to scrutiny everywhere they travel.
They are olive-skinned natives of Saudi Arabia who attend Admiral Farragut Academy in St. Petersburg. So when their British Airways flight from London landed at Tampa on Tuesday evening, they barely blinked when asked to be photographed and fingerprinted.
A day after 115 airports and 14 major seaports across the country began the new procedures as an added measure of homeland security, the brothers were among the first travelers to encounter the new procedures at Tampa International Airport.
"It's not that big a deal," Abdullah Enany said.
Said Saif: "It doesn't bother me at all."
The brothers, who cleared security nearly two hours after their flight landed, said the new security measure seemed to slow down customs officials a bit. But they said they feel certain the tests will run smoother in time.
The new program, known as US-VISIT, allows customs workers to check foreign passengers instantly against a national criminal database, as well as terrorist watch lists. Citizens from 27 countries, mostly in Europe, can travel to the United States and are exempt from being fingerprinted and photographed.
Exempt travelers can enter the United States with passports for business or pleasure for up to 90 days. If they plan to stay longer, they must have a visa and would be subject to the new procedures.
Other travelers aboard British Airways flight 2167 to Tampa on Tuesday, like many foreign travelers across the country a day earlier, didn't seem to mind the extra safeguards.
"It's quite all right," said Pankaj Pavagadhi, 60, who lives in London and is visiting relatives in Palm Harbor. He plans to stay longer than three months, so he was fingerprinted and photographed. "As long as there is security, especially in this day and age, I am fine (with it)."
Homeland Security officials have said that when done properly, the new procedures should take only about 15 seconds. That seems to be happening, at least so far.
"From what I've heard from passengers and operations people, it seems to be going pretty smoothly," said Zachary Mann, a Miami-based spokesman for U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. "No delays that are out of the norm."
Mann said 13 airports in Florida are using the new procedure. Miami by far is the largest, handling about 25,000 foreign passengers a day, Mann said. The next biggest is Orlando, followed by Tampa.
- Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.
