Air cargo handling experts and those employees who are working at any one of an airport’s air cargo checkpoint solutions sites are grappling with changes in the way cargo is now being inspected under new laws that took effect Feb. 1.

According to Networkworld News, February marked the launch of new guidelines for air cargo screening under a 2007 mandate that requires the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to screen 50 percent of all cargo on board passenger aircraft, and then 100 percent of all cargo inspection by August 2010.
Of course business owners are concerned about the changes, as the article states, pointing out industries such as the produce and livestock industries that must rely on fast turnaround at the nation’s airport and other shipping portals to get their products to their destination in a timely manner.

The Fed is moving in the direction of having TSA oversee all aspects of air cargo security and this is one more component of the plan.  However, the TSE has already said that there will be challenges, specifically for the shipping firms, even the biggies such as FedX and UPS, who will be picking up the tab for the gap in coverage under the new mandates.

It’s anticipated that private companies will be forced to pay for the screening work conducted by the TSA and this could cost business a hefty sum and put smaller companies out of business all together—all against of one of the worst economic landscapes since the great depression.

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