18 Feb False positive – II

A few weeks ago, a swab test of Contrarian’s laptop at Stanfield International Airport registered traces of nitroglycerin, leading to an additional interview and a 95% thorough physical pat-down. Details here.

The Canadian Air Traffic Safety Agency (CATSA) has apologized in writing to a Winnipeg-based human-rights activist for a similar incident. A swab test of Ali Saeed’s hands – not his laptop – turned up traces of trinitrotoluene, or TNT. After questioning, Saeed was permitted to board his flight for Denver. His return flight was uneventful.

Regular readers will know that Contrarian detests many aspects of airport security. Recent air travel through South America — where officials do not obsess over the amount of mouthwash among your toiletries, passengers carry pop bottles aboard unchallenged, and metal detectors do not have such hair-triggers that the rivets on your Levis set them off — reinforced my view that Canada has been unnecessarily craven in adopting idiotic US screening standards.

But random checks for explosives strike me as one of the few CATSA protocols that actually carries some protective value. In my case, the secondary screening was carried out professionally and politely, and the CATSA supervisor summoned to deal with the situation explained the nature of the alarm and what might have triggered it. I have no complaint about the incident.

So why did CATSA apologize to Ali Saeed? Because officials broke protocol by telling him about their findings.

CATSA’s procedures stipulate that screening officers must not discuss an … alarm with passengers… We are sorry that this is not what occurred. We extend our sincere apologies for the screening officers’ actions and the stress it caused you.

In my case, being told what the swab test turned up and what common household chemicals (hand cream, heart medication, household cleaners) might have triggered the false positive, helped persuade me that the episode, while not fun, was reasonable and appropriate.

So it seems to me CATSA has apologized to Saeed for something it did right, and by implication, promises not to do right again.