The Transportation Security Administration announced Oct. 4 that it will not set a Dec. 31, 2011, deadline for 100% screening of cargo on international passenger aircraft bound for the U.S. TSA said it reached this decision after careful consideration of industry comments and a thorough examination of the unique challenges facing international cargo screening. TSA will continue to work toward meeting the statutory requirement for 100% screening but has not set a new anticipated deadline.
TSA officials had testified at a March 9 congressional hearing that they were working to meet the 100% screening requirement by Dec. 31, two years ahead of schedule. TSA had proposed the accelerated timetable in light of certain threats as well as the considerable progress made by air carriers in screening international inbound cargo. Specifically, carriers were found to be screening a higher percentage of air cargo (about 80% as of August 2010) than initially estimated (about 65%), and many air carriers were are already at or close to 100%. Read more here.
