Heathrow Airport Staff Learn to Read Body Language

New reports are circulating that Heathrow Airport staff have been given body language training in order to spot suspected terrorists. Security staff at Heathrow are being trained in behavioral profiling of passengers in order to stop suspected terrorists from ever boarding the plane.

A specialist unit of airport staff is being taught how to recognize the body language of potential suicide bombers. Police that are patrolling at transport hubs already look for suspicious behaviors. However, this new scheme, which is called a Behavioral Analysis Screening System, aims specifically at learning about the traits of would be bombers.

The specifics of the training are secret to all, but it will be based on an Israeli model. This means that people will be able to attempt to identify a suspicious individual walking in a crowd of hundreds by looking nervous. This could mean by avoiding eye contract or having the appearance of being drugged.

They are also being trained to look for basic tell tale clues, such as wearing heavy or bulky clothing to hide explosives and the way some people handle their bags or backpacks. This new training is the latest response to the Christmas Day failed bombing.

The chief constable of the BTP, Andy Trotter, said that this is an objective assessment of peoples’ behavior rather than profiling who they are. The method takes away the blanket approach to stop and search and let officers focus on people who may be of interest by looking at their behaviors. He noted that they do not profile, but in a mass transit situation they are dealing with a whole range of different people. The idea is to make their officers more targeted when they are confronted with masses of people.