But Congressman Bernie Thompson (D-Mississippi), chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, says the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has failed to identify and implement new technologies that could make check-ins faster and flying safer.

"The snail's pace of deploying new technology is unacceptable," Thompson told Washington Post reporter Del Quentin Wilber in a recent interview. "We remain vulnerable because we have not kept up with technological innovation."

Of Puffers and Privacy

Last year, a report by the Government Accountability Office was critical of the TSA's efforts to bring new screening technologies online. Among other things, the GAO noted that the TSA requested funds for fiscal year 2007 to operate approximately 434 explosives trace portals (the large doorways that blow puffs of air over travelers to dislodge any possible molecules of explosives).

The GAO found, however, that the TSA "halted the acquisition and deployment of the portals in June 2006" due to maintenance and performance issues. The Washington Post found that the portals were unable to cope with the challenging airport environment and fell victim to dirt, dust and jet fumes. More than a hundred of the portals, each of which cost the TSA tens of thousands of dollars to purchase, are sitting in a Texas warehouse while the TSA tries to figure out how to make them more durable.

Another security innovation, the so-called back-scatter X-ray machine, has been slowed by significant privacy concerns. The device works by scanning passengers with a low-intensity X-ray that provides the machine technician with a clear view of what the passenger is carrying in his or her pockets or under clothing. But the view is reportedly too clear, producing startling detailed images of the passenger's anatomy.

To address privacy concerns, TSA is spending $20,000 (above the $100,000 price per machine) to block the screening agent's view of the passenger being screened. Vendors are also being required by the TSA to reduce the resolution of the X-ray image, a step that some vendors feel will make the machines markedly less effective.

New X-ray to the Rescue?

In a recent interview with the Congressional Quarterly, TSA director Kip Hawley conceded that the agency is shifting its focus from puffing to peering. But Hawley went on to say that the agency is pinning its hopes on a new type of X-ray technology.

"The AT X-ray [advanced X-ray technologies] at the checkpoint for carry-on bags is one that you'll see a lot of in the coming year," Hawley said. "We've bought 250 of them and they'll start being deployed in the spring, and those will be very much in evidence. So I think that's probably the biggest impact across the country and that will have the effect of a very much sharper image for our ability to detect what we need to detect."

Hawley said the AT X-ray will have the added benefit of operating much more quickly, which should speed up bag examination and hopefully shorten check-in lines.