FAA Rescinds More Relaxed List of Carry-Ons

In a move they now say was a mistake, federal aviation security officials issued confidential instructions last month permitting passengers to carry baseball bats and other items that could be wielded as weapons aboard jetliners.

The instructions to security screeners--effective when the government assumed control of airport checkpoints on Feb. 17--expanded the list of “permitted items” to include baseball and cricket bats, hockey sticks, ski poles, pool cues and golf clubs.

A copy of the revised list of carry-on items was made available to The Times by a security source who disagreed with the new policy. Baseball bats and many of the other items were forbidden when security was tightened immediately after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

After inquiries by The Times on Friday, Transportation Department officials said the new policy was a mistake.

“The Transportation Security Administration is rescinding the security directive in question and substituting a new one with a more restricted list of what is permitted beyond security and thus in passenger cabins of airliners,” the agency said in a written statement issued late Friday. It asked travelers to check with their airline if they have any questions.

The episode is likely to add to the confusion among travelers--and airport security screeners--about what can and can’t be taken aboard an aircraft. Independent security experts said it also represents questionable judgment by officials.

“Why would anybody need a baseball bat on an airplane?” asked Billie H. Vincent, a former head of security for the Federal Aviation Administration. “It’s an extraordinarily bad idea. Sure, you don’t want [a bat] to get banged up. But you can put it in a box or wrap it up.”

The decision to take back the rule means “someone looked at this and finally woke up,” said Vincent, now an aviation consultant.

The new carry-on list had not been widely publicized but was spelled out in instructions issued to airport screeners.

Publicly, the FAA Web site continues to advise travelers that baseball and softball bats, ski poles, hockey sticks and golf clubs are not to be brought into the passenger cabin.

The FAA Web site says that any “athletic equipment that could be used as a weapon” must be packed in checked baggage, which is stowed in the cargo hold. Officials say passengers should follow a simple rule with regard to carry-on items: “If in doubt, leave it out.”

Several Transportation Department officials said that the new carry-on list was the subject of internal discussions before it went to the 429 airports now under federal jurisdiction. One official recalled a discussion about holding an event to publicize the relaxed rules. But others said they became concerned when they saw baseball bats on the list.

The guidance to screeners also contained a list of 55 “prohibited items,” which includes billy clubs. Vincent said a baseball bat can be used in much the same way as a billy club. “You don’t have to swing it. You can poke someone in the gut.”

Most of the prohibited items--such as automatic weapons, bows and arrows, and dynamite--appeared on the list for obvious reasons.

Others probably would not be considered dangerous by most people. Included in this category are children’s transformer robots; some can be turned into toy guns. Bullwhips and power drills were also listed as prohibited.

The list of permitted articles contained 25 items, including toothpicks and medical syringes with a doctor’s note. Other allowed items were harder to fathom, including “restraining devices.”