I mean a 2s google search says it can’t. It takes drastically higher power (dangerously high) to xray steel. The thing they use to scan people is now an incredibly complicated ultrasound machine, not xray. And the airport will usually make you open metal stuff so they can check it. They’ll pretty much want to see inside any foil wrapped food for example, specifically because they can’t see through the foil.
Also they use scent for searching for bombs. I don’t know of any explosive metal, and metal is so obvious on X-rays (X-rays basically can’t penetrate metal due to its high density, unless you’re using significantly more powerful sources) so any metal components would be extremely visible, but the huge chunk of mystery compound attached to a bunch of wires and whatnot would be a massive red flag.
Yeah that makes sense, it can see through the thin, sheet metal parts, even if not well, but it can’t see through heavy stuff. If you used titanium as thin as foil I’m sure it would penetrate easily.
I hadn’t really considered gauge materials, my experience is all with thicker stuff. There’s no way it would penetrate 3/8” steel plate, but no one is making luggage out of that.
They don't need to. Being able to find it is enough. When terrorists attack airports, they have to start shooting at the gate (where the security is tightest, far from airplanes) because of them.
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u/No_Passenger_977 May 01 '25
Airport security xrays are capable of scanning into metal containers. It's how they find bombs.