The Transportation Department said today that it had fined 29 airlines a total of $1.6 million for failing to detect simulated weapons in tests of airport security.

The simulated weapons do not mimic the heat or smell of the real guns, however, and never jam.

In past drills, a small team of intruders would enter a plant's premises and, with simulated weapons, try to outmaneuver the security guards to get to vulnerable areas.

In the past, those drills included force-on-force exercises, with testers playing the role of terrorists, using simulated weapons that resemble laser-tag toys.

The simulated weapons also reflect a generation's anxious preoccupation with the war in Vietnam.

"What good is a simulated weapon going to do?"

The industrial architecture and biomechanical trappings of the Borg complex vanished, along with the security trio's simulated weapons and equipment.

"I want a full combat generation begun immediately-no simulated weapons or procedures-until I give the word, " Tamalko continued.

Combat training, mostly - combat drill and combat exercises and combat maneuvers, using everything from bare hands to simulated nuclear weapons.

The MoD training software produced by his team was adapted to make sure the simulated weapons used would be "credible" and perform as they would do in combat.