Local News

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS 5 / AP) ― Airports in San Francisco, Oakland, San Jose and Los Angeles were tangled with long lines and cluttered with trash bins filled with thousands of discarded toiletries Thursday as frustrated travelers dealt with the fallout from a foiled terror plot involving planes from Britain to California and other destinations.

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger activated the National Guard at the state's largest airports to bolster security for the first time since the weeks following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Some 300 Guard troops were to be deployed by late Thursday night to the airports in San Francisco, Oakland and Los Angeles, where direct flights from Europe were scheduled to arrive.

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Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said at a briefing that "as many as 10 aircraft" were targeted and U.S. intelligence officials told The Associated Press that plotters had hoped to stage a dry run within two days.

A U.S. intelligence official said the plotters had hoped to target United, American and Continental Airlines flights from Britain to major airports in New York, Washington and California. But the governor's homeland security director, Matthew Bettenhausen, said "specific cities and targets were not known to be part of the plot."

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom said he was told the Homeland Security investigation thus far indicated that planes headed for San Francisco were not targets. He added that National Guard troops would be assigned to the airport's perimeter and fuel storage areas.

Villaraigosa also said there was no information indicating a specific threat to planes headed to Los Angeles. About 2,900 people travel from Heathrow International Airport in London to LAX on five airlines every day, said Paul Haney, an LAX airport spokesman.

Security was at its tightest in years, as harried passengers waited hours in lines only to be told they couldn't leave any liquids toothpaste, shampoo, hair gel, beverages, contact solution or electronic key fobs in their carry-on luggage.

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said the terrorists planned to use liquid explosives disguised as beverages and other common products and set them off with detonators disguised as electronic devices.

Even before the National Guard arrived, security was clearly tighter. Transportation Security Administration personnel, airport police and local police were on hand, as well as bomb-sniffing dogs, plainclothes officers and special operations personnel, officials said.

"Everybody who goes and travels is going to see a significantly heightened security presence as well as an increased screening process, much of it by hand as well as X-ray equipment," said Chris Bertelli, a spokesman for the governor's Office of Homeland Security.

In Los Angeles, lines wound out of the terminal and onto the sidewalk, with waits stretching longer than two hours as frustrated passengers hurried to stuff toiletries, key chains and laptops into checked luggage, the contents of their suitcases spilling onto the terminal floor.

By early evening, screeners had collected 25 plastic bins filled with suntan lotion, shaving gel, hair mousse, mini-bottles of vodka, wine, toothpaste, deodorant and Raid insect spray.

Villaraigosa said there was no information indicating a specific threat to Los Angeles World Airport facilities, including LAX, or their flights.

"These events provide a clear and ominous reminder of the fight against terrorism and demands are constant vigilance," he said. "... We're serving notice to terrorists: we will catch you before you set foot in our airports and we will put you away for the rest of your lives."

Most travelers said they weren't bothered by the extra security, despite the inconvenience.

Minneapolis-bound passenger Sunita Reddy, 25, applied a few final dabs of lotion to her hands and face before dropping the tubes into a large blue trash bin set up by the security staff.

"I think it's OK, it's for the public good," she said. "It's cheap stuff anyway."

Searches for forbidden items also caused considerable backups at San Francisco International Airport. Screening passengers usually takes an average of six minutes. Thursday, it was at least an hour, airport duty manager Doug Lyon said.

The United Airlines terminal was a scene of high tension by mid-day, with confused travelers pushing and elbowing each other.

"I think it's ridiculous," said Kathy McMahon, 49, of Mill Valley, who was frantically helping her daughter, bound for college in New Jersey, stuff sunscreen, makeup, contact lens solution and other liquids into her suitcases. "But we'll do it anyway. What are you going to do?"

At Oakland International Airport, officials also contended with a power outage at one point. All security equipment during the outage ran on backup generators, said Cyndy Johnson, an airport spokeswoman.

Morio Tateno took his sister and his 3-year-old son to the San Jose airport, where they were about to board an American Airlines flight to Tokyo. They stripped their carry-ons of cosmetics and water, but worried about how they'd fare without bringing their own water onto a 12-hour flight.

"We're hoping they have plenty of water on the plane," Tateno said. "I don't know if they have enough for everyone who cannot bring their own extra water."

(© 2006 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)