Air security in spotlight after failed Detroit attack

A botched terrorist attack on a US plane by a Nigerian just as it was due to land in Detroit puts the spotlight on the efficacy of prevailing airport and on-board security measures.
Passengers aboard Northwest Airlines Flight 253 reported Friday seeing a flash of light and hearing a loud noise before they saw flames inside the plane's cabin.
According to media reports, the perpetrator Abdul Farouk Abdulmutallab admitted to the Federal Bureau of Investigation that he was linked to al-Qaeda.
Douglas Laird, a former security director for Northwest Airlines, said he was not surprised that Abdulmutallab was able to smuggle what was described as a sophisticated explosive device onto the Northwest Airlines flight carrying 278 passengers from Amsterdam.
"I hate to say it, but you get what you pay for," he said. "My real fear is that there may be others."
Laird said that airports around the world should switch from X-rays and metal detectors to full-body scans.
But the switch could pose a financial problem: an X-ray machine costs less than 50,000 dollars while body-scanning equipment would increase the price tag to more than one million.
Laird said he was surprised someone apparently had chosen Amsterdam's Schiphol airport to board a plane with explosive materials as it meets all international security standards.
But other experts point out that 100 percent terrorism-proof airports simply do not exist.