Full body-scanner headed for Rapid City airport

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RAPID CITY (AP) — The Rapid City Regional Airport will become the first airport in South Dakota to use full-body scanners.

Airport director Cameron Humphries tells the media that Transportation Security Administration officers will begin using the Advanced Imaging Technology unit Friday.

The airport is one of 16 across the country that will receive the equipment in the coming weeks. The TSA purchased 300 of the units in September for roll-out across the country.

More than 100 airports in the United States use the machines. Both the scanners and its alternative, a pat-down conducted by a TSA employee, have ignited controversy over their perceived invasiveness.

The scanners can detect both metallic and nonmetallic objects concealed under clothing.

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