Ready to wait longer to get into the Pentagon? Already, regular visitors have to pass through metal detectors if they want inside. But the bombs favored by terrorist groups these days don't use much metal. So officials responsible for protecting the building are looking at the explosives detection methods that airports have to stop the next underwear bomber. You might want to build some extra time into your trip.
No, we're not talking about naked scanners just yet. This afternoon, the Pentagon called on businesses to provide it with "the Itemiser DX Explosives Trace Detector or Brand Name Equivalent." That's a device that performs an electronic sniff of the swabs that Transportation Security Agency officials run through your luggage.
More specifically, the Pentagon wants to include "ion-trap mobility spectrometry" in its external-security repertoire, capable of picking up 11 types of "plastic, commercial and military explosives" down to a trillionth of a gram. Successful trace detectors will perform their scans in under 10 seconds, and will be able to process 150 samples -- that is, people -- per hour.
The recent threats at the Pentagon have had more to do with seemingly random gunshots. But all it takes is one al-Qaeda plot to pack PETN-laden bombs into printer cartridges to get security officials thinking about where the next threat comes from. The solicitation specifies that the detectors have to read 150 samples -- that is, people -- in an hour, which at least indicates that the Pentagon security doesn't want to move at the snail's pace that nearby National Airport does.
Photo: Department of Homeland Security
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