Online Reporter
The Herald 9 January 1989
AIRPORT authorities have introduced new and more stringent security arrangements for checking passengers and luggage at Harare and two other airports servicing international flights.
This is in line with the heightened security checks that have been instituted worldwide following the bomb explosion on the Pan American Boeing 747 three weeks ago in which more than 270 people were killed.
Harare, Bulawayo and Victoria Falls, which serve international flights, have for a long time not had proper security arrangements, apart from the brief period during the Non Aligned Movement Summit in 1986.
For that, the President’s Office bought and installed sophisticated detection equipment for body and luggage checks.
Before that, Air Zimbabwe had obsolete X-ray equipment at Harare International Airport to check checked-in luggage while passengers and their hand luggage were physically searched by security officials.
However, most of the equipment brought in 1986 now needs servicing but because it is not owned by the Department of Civil Aviation or Air Zimbabwe, arrangements to have it serviced are being complicated by questions of ownership.
But since the Pan American disaster and, more recently, the bomb scare on an Olympic Boeing 747 over Zimbabwe two weeks ago, authorities have been discussing new security arrangements for the airport and Air Zimbabwe travellers now have to identify their luggage on the airport apron before it is loaded into the hold of the aircraft.
This process is technically known as luggage-passenger matching and travellers are allowed through to identify luggage in small groups at a time to ensure maximum security.
Passenger matching has been a minimum security requirement at many other airports in Africa for some time and is aimed at ensuring that passengers who check in their luggage also travel with it.
Lesson for today:
The Pan American bombing and a recent bomb scare prompted stricter security. Major incidents often lead to policy reforms and improved safety standards. Airports previously lacked proper security except during special events. Security should be a permanent priority, not a temporary measure for high-profile occasions.
Sophisticated equipment installed in 1986 was now outdated and poorly maintained due to ownership disputes. Investing in security technology is not enough, regular servicing and clear responsibility are essential.
Passenger-luggage matching was introduced as a minimum international requirement. Travellers now identify their luggage before loading to prevent tampering. Security is a joint effort between authorities and passengers.
The passage teaches that aviation security requires proactive planning, global standards, proper maintenance, and collaboration between authorities and travellers. Passenger-luggage matching is a security procedure designed to prevent unaccompanied baggage from being loaded onto an aircraft, which could be used to conceal explosives.
