Travelers more cautious, but airport security the same

  Deborah Sharp

  07/22/1996

  USA Today

  FINAL

  Page 03A

  (Copyright 1996)

  MIAMI -- Waiting for a flight home to Oklahoma, the Steffen family provided a

  snapshot of the traveling public's reaction to the mysterious crash of TWA Flight

  800.

  Mike Steffen, a firefighter who helped search for victims after the Oklahoma

  City bombing, shrugged off any notions of heightened danger in the skies.

  Roger, 18, said he hadn't thought about what happened aboard the Paris-bound

  plane, which crashed off New York's coast, killing 230.

  But his mother, Cheryl Steffen, had. Already a nervous flier, she'd taken careful

  note of the signs saying Miami International's baggage lockers were closed for

  security reasons.

  ``This is never something I associated with America,'' she said. ``But since . . .

  Oklahoma City, you know it can happen anywhere.'' Miami airport officials say

  security has not increased in recent days. The signs that Cheryl Steffen noticed

  are more than a year old.

  Even Atlanta, host of the Centennial Olympics, did not change its security

  measures. But its security personnel, like some at other airports, were being more

  zealous.

  Generally that's the story nationwide: Some travelers were more wary in the

  wake of last week's crash, but airports were saying that security measures haven't

  changed.

  ``Our security officials reiterated our standard procedures (after the crash.) We

  haven't made any changes here at O'Hare. We're still at the same security level,''

  said Megan Hughes, Chicago airport spokeswoman.

  Airport security has remained largely the same since the crash for two reasons,

  experts say. Despite widespread speculation, there has been no conclusion that a

  bomb downed the Paris-bound plane. And airports and airlines already are

  operating at the third-highest of four security levels.

  The Federal Aviation Administration put the nation's airports on increased alert

  in August and strengthened the directive in October. The agency won't say what

  prompted the move, but the October order coincided with the conviction of

  Muslim radicals for an elaborate terror plot to blow up landmarks and buildings

  around the USA.

  ``We don't discuss security levels. Period,'' FAA spokeswoman Drucie Andersen

  said Sunday.

  Art Kosatka, an aviation security consultant with Counter Technology Inc., said

  the FAA could require extra measures at specific airports. But the standards are

  so high that blanket orders to improve security would be less effective, he said.

  Kosatka said he expects some of the increased security measures to become

  permanent after the FAA consults with industry groups.

  ``The baseline will be raised,'' Kosatka said.

  Travelers said security officials appeared more vigilant during the weekend.

  Amy Hugaert, 27, a pharmacy technician from Mesa, Ariz., says that when she

  changed planes in St. Louis for Chicago on Sunday, ``they asked for my photo

  ID twice: once when I checked my bags and once when I showed my ticket.

  ``But everything else was smooth.''

  Los Angeles airport was busy Sunday with vacationing families. There was only

  one indicator of increased security: a sign on Century Boulevard reading,

  ``Unattended vehicles will be towed.''

  Contributing: Tom Curley, K.V. Johnson, Jonathan T. Lovitt and John Larrabee

  TEXT OF INFO BOX BEGINS HERE

  Airports go through 4 stages of alert

  Airport security levels are adjusted depending upon the threat perceived by the

  Federal Aviation Administration and law enforcement:

  Level 1: Standard security, no special precautions.

  Level 2: Greater security guard and police presence. Emergency preparedness

  plans must be in place. Unattended bags get scrutiny.

  Level 3: Heightened surveillance, more police patrols; unattended vehicles are

  towed, and unattended bags are confiscated; possible parking restrictions.

  Passengers must show IDs and answer questions about their baggage. Airports

  have been at this level since the World Trade Center bombing convictions in

  October.

  Level 4: Highest level. Curbside check-in prohibited; terminals limited to

  passengers and personnel with clearances; strict parking restrictions.