Military displaying guns at airport

[Strong Eagle]

A related question which has puzzled me. If since 9/11 there have been more armed patrols in the airport why is it still possible to enter the airport and have no security check until arriving at the departure gate?

In 2004, 2005, there were armed officers near each entrance to the airport. You had to bring your bag over to them. They used a "sniffer" to see if there was anything naughty in you baggage. They'd push down on the top of the suitcase to get a whiff test. Seems like they disappeared again in 2006.

[Steve1960]

A related question which has puzzled me. If since 9/11 there have been more armed patrols in the airport why is it still possible to enter the airport and have no security check until arriving at the departure gate?

Security checks are bottle necks. Bottle-necks with lots of people milling about are obvious attack targets. The closer it is to the front of the airport/entry, the easier it is for a suicide bomber to walk right up and kill hundreds queued up at this bottle neck. Singapore's design of moving the gates farther back is a mitigation to this threat.

Interesting approach given how close a suicide bomber could get to a plane on Changi. Thanks for the insight

[zzm9980]

A related question which has puzzled me. If since 9/11 there have been more armed patrols in the airport why is it still possible to enter the airport and have no security check until arriving at the departure gate?

Security checks are bottle necks. Bottle-necks with lots of people milling about are obvious attack targets. The closer it is to the front of the airport/entry, the easier it is for a suicide bomber to walk right up and kill hundreds queued up at this bottle neck. Singapore's design of moving the gates farther back is a mitigation to this threat.

Interesting approach given how close a suicide bomber could get to a plane on Changi. Thanks for the insight

There are layers of security you just don't see. When you walk through ICA checkpoint, you don't think every person is scrutinized on camera? If someone was going to sneak contraband onto a plane, it probably wouldn't be through the front door of the airport anyway.

[Steve1960]

A related question which has puzzled me. If since 9/11 there have been more armed patrols in the airport why is it still possible to enter the airport and have no security check until arriving at the departure gate?

Security checks are bottle necks. Bottle-necks with lots of people milling about are obvious attack targets. The closer it is to the front of the airport/entry, the easier it is for a suicide bomber to walk right up and kill hundreds queued up at this bottle neck. Singapore's design of moving the gates farther back is a mitigation to this threat.

Interesting approach given how close a suicide bomber could get to a plane on Changi. Thanks for the insight

There are layers of security you just don't see. When you walk through ICA checkpoint, you don't think every person is scrutinized on camera? If someone was going to sneak contraband onto a plane, it probably wouldn't be through the front door of the airport anyway.

No I was considering airport security not aircraft security. In Manila all bags are screened at the entrance to the airport, in Heathrow hand luggage is screened at the security checkpoint inside the airport but before immigration. In Changi hand luggage is generally not screened until arrival at the departure gate. I am just musing over the differences in approach and why they exist.

[maneo]

Saw a bunch of red berets guarding outside the Tanglin Club's courts last week.
Never seen that before.
Strange.

[fujixe2JJ]

those armed walking ard in changi airport are saf nsf doing duty

[sundaymorningstaple]

No kidding? Really? Wow! Who woulda guessed?

[taxico]

they are also male (the homo...sapien sort).