UNABOMBER WATCH : Safety First

The fear is palpable among summer vacationers and others flying out of Los Angeles International Airport. A serial bomber who has eluded capture for 17 years said in a letter that he would blow up a plane flying out of the world’s fourth busiest airport. Later, the so-called Unabomber said he had never intended to carry out the threat.

Despite the second message, federal and local authorities are wisely maintaining the extraordinary security precautions put in place at LAX on Wednesday. Every possible safeguard is necessary to protect the public and airline employees against a criminal who has killed at least three people and injured many.

So travelers need to be patient, allowing for extra time at the airport because of a requirement to present photo identifications at check-in.

LAX also has a system in place to make sure that the bags on a plane match the passengers on board. If a passenger does not board a flight, his or her bags are removed. The premise is that most terrorists are not bent on taking a suicide flight with their bomb.

Mail and packages going through LAX also are subject to search. That means deliveries may be delayed. However, the extra time and effort to weed out suspicious packages is a small price to pay for public safety.

The other key priority for law enforcement, of course, is to catch the Unabomber. Until he is behind bars, the hundreds of thousands who pass through LAX must travel with a cooperative attitude.