Air Cargo Insecurity
• 11.3 million metric tons of cargo passed through U.S. airports in 2003.
• Less than 10 percent of it was screened for explosives.
• 100 percent of air passengers and their baggage are screened for explosives.
• Virtually all passenger flights carry air cargo.
• American Airlines spent $70 million to provide more legroom in coach class.
• Boeing spent $1 billion to launch a satellite-powered, high-speed in-flight Internet service.
• The U.S. Department of Homeland Security will spend $4.8 billion this year on passenger and baggage screening.
• It will spend $115 million on air cargo security.
• Last year, two-thirds of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s transportation security R&D budget went to technology for countering attacks on commercial aircraft with shoulder-launched surface-to-air missiles.
• The United States has 6.3 million kilometers of roads, more than 160,000 kilometers of rail, nearly 600,000 bridges, more than 300 ports, and approximately 500 railroad stations.
SOURCES: U.S. Transportation Security Administration, ABI Research, Boeing Commercial Airplanes Group, GAO, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and American Airlines
Keep Reading
Most Popular
A Roomba recorded a woman on the toilet. How did screenshots end up on Facebook?
Robot vacuum companies say your images are safe, but a sprawling global supply chain for data from our devices creates risk.
A startup says it’s begun releasing particles into the atmosphere, in an effort to tweak the climate
Make Sunsets is already attempting to earn revenue for geoengineering, a move likely to provoke widespread criticism.
10 Breakthrough Technologies 2023
The viral AI avatar app Lensa undressed me—without my consent
My avatars were cartoonishly pornified, while my male colleagues got to be astronauts, explorers, and inventors.
Stay connected
Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review
Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.