Airlines race to find sniffer dogs to meet cargo inspection rules

Airlines and logistics groups are racing to snap up sniffer dogs to meet new regulations to screen goods on cargo flights as part of tougher rules to crack down on terrorism. Demand for K9 or police dogs, able to sniff out explosives, has surged with worries of shipment delays as operators struggle to find animals and X-ray screening equipment in time for a July deadline. It is the latest threat to supply chains, already strained because of the coronavirus crisis and the online shopping surge that have driven up demand for international shipping. Air cargo has also been stretched because of the sharp rise in demand for goods at a time when many passenger planes, which usually carry half the freight volumes, remain grounded. The rules, which mean all goods on international cargo flights must be screened, have been brought in by the ICAO. The deadline is causing particular problems in the US where groups were a long way off from meeting the ICAO rules and there was uncertainty over whose responsibility it was to screen the cargo. It expands existing requirements to check freight in the belly of passenger aircraft in response to a printer cartridge bomb plot in 2010 that targeted two cargo planes bound for the US from Yemen. Glyn Hughes, CE of The International Air Cargo Association, said sniffer dogs were unparalleled in their ability to detect dangerous cargo. “Canine detection systems are so accurate,” he said.<br/>