ComSec warns to prepare for 100pc air freight screening in US

COMSEC INTERNATIONAL LLC, an independent provider of cargo screening services and consultation, has started advising shippers, carriers, freight forwarders and other companies to begin planning for new US federal air cargo screening requirements.

"We've known that plans have been in the works for some time to advance air cargo security measures and, with this action, the time is right for supply chain professionals to start considering their approach to meeting demands for increased security," the company said in a statement posted on Business Wire.

If passed, the proposed the Air Cargo Security Act would extend the 100 per cent screening requirement currently mandated for cargo transported on passenger aircraft to include all air cargo, whether shipped on cargo freighters or on board passenger aircraft.

Jason Watson, a cargo security consultant and cofounder of ComSec International, said: "We've known that plans have been in the works for some time to advance air cargo security measures and, with this action, the time is right for supply chain professionals to start meeting demands for increased security."

Under the proposed bill, the Department of Homeland Security would create a set of regulations for screening 100 per cent of cargo transported on all-cargo aircraft within three years, achieving 50 per cent of all cargo being screened within 18 months of passage of the legislation.

It would also lead to the establishment of a system for the regular inspection of shipping facilities and associated security procedures for the handling of air freight transported on board air freighters, to ensure that appropriate security controls, systems and protocols are being implemented.
(Source:www.schednet.com)