Derek Neary
Northern News Services

Fort Simpson (Sep 28/01) - The lineups in southern airports may be lengthier than ever as security measures have become much more stringent, but things haven't changed much in Fort Simpson.

Murray Sibbeston, co-owner of K&K Expediting, an agent for First Air, said he's received numerous inquiries from passengers about changes to procedures. All he tells them is to bring photo identification if they are travelling beyond Yellowknife as personnel may check outgoing passengers for I.D. in the capital.

First Air staff in Fort Simpson are also being more thorough in making sure all baggage is properly tagged and accounted for by passengers. If a passenger checks in a bag but doesn't show up for the flight for any reason, that bag will be pulled off the plane, Sibbeston said.

Bags are not being searched by hand in Fort Simpson, so there is really no extra time required at check-in. However, some travel agents advise passengers to show up two hours prior to the flight, he said.

"So for us it didn't really change much. It didn't cause any delays," Sibbeston said. "There's no extra time required before check-in."

In the days following the terrorist attack in the U.S., there was speculation that hunters may no longer be able to transport their firearms on bush planes. That hasn't proven true at all, according to Fred Aubin, a pilot for Wolverine Air. He said there are safety precautions for storing firearms in the plane, such as placing them in locked case, installing trigger guards and removing all ammunition. As well, smaller airline companies tend to know their customers, he added.

"We've been flying the same people year in and year out," he said.

Heather Peddle, office manager for Simpson Air, which is an agent for Air Tindi, said there has been no change in their boarding procedures either.

"It's business as usual," she said.