Full body scanners now compulsory for Manchester air passengers

Full body scanners are to become the only security option for people flying out of Manchester Airport, the BBC reports today. The excessive amount of coverage given to the disapproval expressed by civil liberties groups has now been counterbalanced by passengers’ attitudes, since it appears that people actually prefer the scanners to the full body pat down, and have been voting with their feet.

According to Manchester Airport, 95% of travellers prefer the scanners and queuing times have been radically reduced. It takes  2 minutes to undergo a pat down, but a mere 27 seconds to pass through a scanner.

In the somewhat overblown debate about this technology it seems to have been overlooked that people are scanned for security reasons at many different sensitive locations, and as for human rights, it does not take much thought to enumerate the various and severe infringements of our rights to autonomy and liberty that we are accept the minute we enter the check-in queue, in order to enjoy the privilege of fast jet travel. In reality, business travelers and others are more concerned about long waits at security checkpoints and whether the resulting delays may impact flight schedules.

Read more:

• Do full body scanners breach the right to privacy?