A new security device at the Salt Lake City International Airport is like a breath of fresh air for safety officials. Or at least a puff of air.
Five "explosive detection trace portals" went into operation at the airport this week. Two were placed in Terminal 1, two in Terminal 2 and one in the International Terminal.
Passengers walk into the large, closet-like device and stand as 13 jets shoot a quick puff of air at them. The devices have been nicknamed "puffers" because of the sound the machines make as the air is shot out of the jets.
The purpose of the air is to stir up any chemicals or traces of materials used to make bombs that might be on a person's clothing, said TSA Federal Security Director Earl Morris. Those particles are then analyzed by the machine.
If the computer determines the materials to be negative, a pair of glass doors open and the passenger can continue on. If something is detected, the puffer quickly analyzes what the chemical is and prints out a report.
Most people are a little startled when the air is shot at them, even though they know it's coming.
"It was a little shocking," passenger Gaylinn Breeze said. "It caught me off guard."
"It was strange," said passenger Dan Hillsheim. "I guess it comes with the new day and age."
Hillsheim carried his 3-year-old son Gabe through the machine with him.
Morris said the general reaction has been positive, with most people understanding why the machine is being used. The only minor problem has been some children being frightened by the puffer.
One 4-year-old girl Tuesday stood with her hands over her eyes, almost in tears, as she waited with nervous anticipation for the air to shoot at her.
Salt Lake is the 25th airport in the nation to get the puffers. The goal is to equip most of the nation's major airports with the devices by the end of the year, Morris said.
Each machine costs between $160,000 to $170,000.
E-mail: preavy@desnews.com