Cleared for takeoff

Air passengers may soon routinely be screened by computers to pick out
suspicious characters who might pose a terrorist threat. The system, developed
by Northwest Airlines, examines such things as how the passenger paid for the
ticket, what baggage they checked in and whether they are frequent flyers. Those
that match the patterns of terrorists are then further scrutinised by airline
staff. The Federal Aviation Administration is proposing that all airlines should
adopt the system.