TSA 'Not Capable' of Detecting Moscow-Like Attack, Critics Say

Jan. 25, 2011 — -- A $212-million federal program designed to spot suspected terrorists at American airports is "not capable of detecting what took place in Moscow," according to the chairman of the House Transportation Committee, Rep. John Mica, R-Florida.

The program, called SPOT, was created in 2006 by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), and now has more than 3,000 "Behavior Detection" officers at 161 airports. The officers receive four days of classroom instruction on how to spot certain unusual behaviors.

But the Government Accountability Office says the TSA has relied on unproven behavioral science and Congressional critics say the program has done nothing to deal with the actual vulnerabilities of airport security.

"I see the classified results and it gives me great concern, I saw what happened [in Moscow] and I have even more concern," Rep. Mica said today on the ABC News program Good Morning America.

The suicide bomb attack at the Moscow airport highlighted a physical vulnerability long recognized by both security officials and terrorists.

"Every airport in the world, including every airport in the United States, has virtually no security until you get to the security checkpoint," said Richard Clarke, an ABC News consultant and former White House counter-terrorism official.

"Very large parts of all airports are inherently insecure."

Ekman also responded to the GAO's questions about the scientific validity of his research by saying "a lot of results are not yet published," and that while the GAO's report had "merit," "it was more critical than it had to be."

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