U.S.-based Coalition for Luggage Security says the London terror plot to blow up aircraft in mid-flight enroute to major cities in the U.S. is an alarming wake-up call for the Bush Administration, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Transportation Security Administration.
The Coalition says it is time to finally take preventative actions in the nation's 450 airports by utilizing the private sector and to require separating baggage from passengers so travelers ship their bags prior to their departure date from airports, announced Richard A. Altomare, Founder and Chairman of The Coalition for Luggage Security and CEO, Universal Express.
The Coalition for Luggage Security says it was established to ensure the safety of travelers through alternate means of luggage transportation. The Coalition consists of prominent businesspersons and companies that educate the public, Congress and the Administration on the importance of solving the luggage and cargo safety issues that exist in airlines and airports.
"Luggage security within our nation's system of airlines, as well as on buses and trains, is sitting on a time bomb that's just waiting to go off," said Altomare. "If we do not change the outmoded way luggage is transported in the U.S. we may end up with worse than the serious paralysis and long-term transportation delays being witnessed in London, which is affecting flights plans worldwide. Our government and its agencies must work to prevent mass murder here on an unimaginable scale."
The solution to the problem, he explained, means changing the way luggage is handled. To this end, The Coalition for Luggage Security, established in 2005, works to ensure the safety of travelers through alternate means of luggage transportation.
"Rather than having to take the baggage through the check-in points, passengers planning an upcoming trip would use a new procedure for shipping their luggage in advance to reach their destination in time for their arrival," explained Mr. Altomare. This would entail allowing the U.S. Postal Service along with 4,000 parcel carriers to handle baggage that is currently carried by the airline industry and be directed by a designated leader of the luggage movement industry.