Sensitive scanners to be installed at Canada airports
OTTAWA. January 6. KAZINFORM Sensitive scanners that make it possible to spot guns and explosives hidden under one's clothes will be installed at Canadian airports soon, Canadian Transport Minister John Baird said Tuesday, Kazinform refers to Itar-Tass.
"We've got to stay ahead of the terrorist elements," he emphasized, pointing out that the government intends to purchase 44 scanners worth $250,000 each. The first of them are to be put in place at the airports of Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, and Halifax already in the coming weeks.
The Minister said the new scanning equipment would be used for a selective examination of passengers who will be given a choice between a full-body scan and a physical search.
The need to enhance safety measures acquired particular urgency following the December 25 incident when a Nigerian tried to blow up a Detroit-bound airliner. Immediately after the incident, Canada banned most carry-on luggage for U.S.-bound passengers in an effort to ease lines at security checkpoints, Kazinform cites Itar-Tass. See www.itar-tass.com for full version.