New TSA Canine Teams Help Secure Aviation, Mass Transit

January 6, 2006

New TSA Canine Teams Help Secure Aviation, Mass Transit
January 6, 2006 – According to the Department of Homeland Security, Office of Public Affairs, the Transportation Security Administration added 12 new teams to its National Explosives Detection Canine Team Program in December.

The teams, which include one dog and one officer, will be assigned to airports in Los Angeles; Cleveland; Phoenix; Tulsa, Okla.; Greensboro, N.C.; and Little Rock, Ark., and mass transit systems in Boston (Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority), Philadelphia (Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority), and Baltimore (Maryland Transit Administration).

"These teams will serve the public in some of the busiest transportation hubs in our nation," TSA Assistant Secretary Kip Hawley said. "Canine teams are a highly effective deterrent to would-be terrorists, and they directly address our goal of enhancing explosives detection capabilities and making security procedures less predictable. We are committed to making these teams available to other modes of transportation coast-to-coast as part of our comprehensive approach to security."

During training, officers were provided instruction on handler skills, explosives safety, and safe handling and accountability of explosives canine training aids. They also spent much of their time searching for explosives in specialized indoor and outdoor training labs that include an aircraft fuselage, a terminal area, and a cargo warehouse.