Decius wrote:

Bombs also aren't really found by airport security. Every bomb that has blown up a plane, has gotten past them. I've never heard of a bomb being detected before it was used at an airport.

Such things aren't necessarily widely reported. A successful bombing gets massive coverage. Thats the thing about security. Most people only notice when you loose. I'm sure there is data out their that justifies the investment. It would be interesting to see it. Wikipedia is not too helpful here...

I've looked around a little, and I wasn't able to find anything. If bombs were found, a controlled explosion is one way used to get rid of them, and I cant find instances of this happening at airports either. Statistics on what is found seem to be hard to locate. I've heard of various weapons being found, but usually I hear of drugs being found. Based on the information I can find, no one is really trying to blow up planes, and the ones who have did so successfully.

I think the key may be finding out about these things in the planning phase. There are few enough bombers running around, locating who they are before they bomb something by use of profiling might be easier than sifting out the needle at the gate.

A large majority of security measures I've seen at transportation facilities seem to be geared toward making people feel secure rather than providing real security.

RE: US News Article | Reuters.com