Nowhere did I say 'cultural' profiling. It is actually psychological profiling together with other intelligence. It doesn't take 2 hours per pax and it isn't run by the army.
The profiling takes place before you even get to the check-in desk. Again, I am not talking about the current farce where a minimum wage employee from a contracted security employment agency with two weeks or less training and about as much background intelligence as a "breaking news" headline on CNN performing the usual ritual we see these days at all long haul check-ins.
A profiler goes along the queue, if there is one, after having observed the people and looks at the tickets and watches the demeanour of the pax. There is some information on the ticket and there are pertinent questions that can be asked which, along with the response and the reactions of the pax will determine whether this person safe to continue to check-in and on to the normal screening of baggage and pockets. This normally only takes a minute or less and there will be several profilers if it is a busy flight.
Should anything alert the profiler then he or she call upon a supervisory profiler who will take the pax off to a separate place away from the rest of the pax and will be interviewed in more depth and possibly subjected to a more thorough screening. The original profiler will be able to go back to their duties and help to expedite the process for the other pax.
It has usually meant that pax have to arrive up to 3 hours before a long-haul flight which aside from normal technical and operational issues usually gets away on time. Of course these flights still operate their check-in to the same timetable that we do now. There will always be people that don't allow enough time for everything and are in a rush. Most long-haul check-ins close-out about an hour before STD which still gives the profilers enough time to deal with latecomers and they will be well enough trained to appreciate all the tricks in the book including someone trying to ruch them in their job.
The problem is that the bean-counters who run the country have decided that everything should be run by private companies who will have made the lowest bid. What we end up with is people who are paid a pittance with minimal training and the most basic of background intelligence about what they are looking for.
What is needed is a government department which recruits high calibre people with the right kind of educational background and probably having been through military intelligence or security services training who are then trained up. They have the backing of the governments own intelligence agencies and are briefed accordingly.
Here in the UK we have privately owned airport security services who recruit at barely above the minimum wage and little more than the most basic of education is a requirement. Well, of course that's cheaper. All these people have to do is count and pick every x pax for a pat down and a bag search or else they have to watch a screen as bag after bag passes endlessly in front of them looking for a shadow or an outline which they may or may not see.
In the USA it is even more of a farce. never mind the latest screw-up at the Virginia Tri-State airport. The US actually set up a government department and has invested billions of dollars in a security screening system. Duh. They could have done the sensible thing and set up profilers which would have required less people but more highly trained with all the back-up that would e needed for less money probably. Again, a typical bean-counter farce which proves they know the price of everything and the value of nothing.
As far as crew are concerned, whether they have a dedicated crew security screening area or not, they would be asked a few questions by a profiler before putting their bags through for check-in or else when passing through their separate security screening area. It isn't rocket science and is certainly doable. Having operated through Tel-Aviv quite a few times after night stopping there over the years, even as a foreign crew trying to get to our aircraft was never a problem and always took no more time and more often than not, less time to get through the security than it does here in the UK and most certainly less time than it does in the USA.
So, anyone trying to jump on the PC bandwagon and trying to make out that profiling is anti-cultural or racist has almost certainly no idea what they are talking about. Whilst no doubt there would be a preponderance of middle eastern looking types more likely to be pulled for secondary profiling, that is inevitable. However, we all know that one doesn't have to be middle eastern looking to be dangerous. There are enough people of ALL nationalities, races and creeds who could be recruited by the terrorists that the profiling would be intelligence led and practised on known variables which include demeanour and response to questioning.
After all, anyone and I include pilots, would show certain traits if they were knowingly about to commit mass murder and about to snuff themselves out. Also, in the often used excuse about being under duress to just pass something through to someone else airside, the same applies. If your family were being held hostage or to ransom in order that you were about to assist in a terrorist act, a trained profiler would be looking at your demeanour and your response to certain questions.
Nothing will ever be 100% secure but profiling is the best way forward. As has been said over and over again on these pages... It's not what someone can get through the x-ray machine or scanner but the person who is intent on committing harm getting on board that is the problem.
We don't need all these delays and stupid security procedures that are throttling our industry which in turn is making travellers lives a misery and threatening our jobs. We need the government to invest properly but all we have is the Muppet show and a lot of low-paid 'security' workers rummaging through our bags and confiscating candy from kids.