How To Build a Shotgun Using Items Found After Airport Security
"If we're trying stop a terrorist threat at the airport, it's already too late," amateur "security researcher" Evan Booth tells FastCompany.
He would know: Booth, a programmer by trade, has been dedicating his free time to designing and demonstrating a variety of homemade weapons constructed out of items commonly found in airports.
That's not so bad until you realize that be "in airports" Booth means after the security checkpoint.
Take one of his latest security-busting devices: The BLUNDERBUSSness Class.
With just a few items easily purchased at post-security shops, Booth was able to construct a fully-functional break-action shotgun.
"It just seemed so invasive, really expensive," Booth says, referring to the TSA's security theater. "And if you’re going to go through all that trouble getting into the terminal, why is all this stuff available in the terminal?"
Despite his disdain for the current state of airport security, Booth says his main goal is ultimately to improve it.
He regularly sends the FBI and the TSA reports of his experiments, but so far the TSA has shown little interest in following up with him.
He was paid a visit by the FBI, though they were more concerned with whether he had actually constructed any weapons at airports than with making sure no one else could.
"What if the terrorists see this?!" reads a disclaimer on Booth's site. "That’s a great question. An even better question is: What if they already know all this?" He continues to encourage the Department of Homeland Security to ask themselves that question as well.
