National Guardsmen patrol Boston's Logan Airport, Newark, elsewhere to reassure fliers

By LESLIE MILLER
Associated Press Writer

BOSTON – Armed military police in camouflage began patrolling airports around the country Friday, including Boston's Logan, where two planes were hijacked Sept. 11.

On the eve of Columbus Day weekend, National Guard troops were also posted at Newark, N.J., where a third hijacked plane took off, and at other airports including Detroit, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Louisville, Ky., and all 19 of Florida's commercial airports.

"Their role is to check the checkers, to make sure the system is working the way it's supposed to," said Lt. Col. Denny Shields, a Minnesota Guard spokesman. "Our intent is to make people more comfortable and reassure them it's safe to fly."

President Bush wants 4,000 to 5,000 troops stationed at the nation's 420 commercial airports for up to six months while the federal government prepares to begin overseeing security. The federal government will pay for the troops.

Shields said his Guard members have been trained in use of deadly force and will be briefed on use of force before each shift.

Long lines formed at Logan as passengers waited to go through security checkpoints.

John DiFava, appointed this week as the airport's new security chief, promised "zero tolerance" for lapses, which have continued despite repeated assurances from state officials.

Passenger Tony Whitworth, who was flying to Hawaii for a vacation, said the added security at Logan made him feel safe. But, he added, "I was going to go, anyway."

Taylor Paulson, waiting at Louisville International to pick up her brother, said she welcomed the new patrols, though, "I think it makes some people more nervous to see them, I mean in the uniforms and all."

Air travel had dropped sharply since Sept. 11, when the two planes out of Boston downed New York's World Trade Center, a jet that took off from Dulles airport near Washington dove into the Pentagon and a fourth that had taken off from Newark crashed in Pennsylvania, apparently short of its target.

At Virginia airports, including Dulles and Reagan National, Guardsmen were due to arrive on Saturday, state officials said. Patrols were due Sunday at New York's John F. Kennedy International and LaGuardia airports.

Airlines have laid off tens of thousands of employees, and although the number of commercial flights has returned to nearly normal, some planes are less than half full.

Security breaches at Logan have focused attention on low-paid, often elderly baggage screeners. But officials at the Massachusetts Port Authority, which runs the airport, said improved safety will require shared intelligence about likely terrorists passing through.

"If something suspicious happens in St. Louis, then that information should be shared immediately with all the nation's airports," Massport spokesman Jose Juves said.

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On the Net:

Logan: www.massport.com/logan

APNP-10-05-01 1054CDT