Tom Quinn, the former head of the Federal Air Marshal Service (FAMS) had once stated that “We’ve gotten it right,” in regard to how the Federal Air Marshal Service is being operated, however a number of Air Marshals do not believe it is being done right, from multiple points of view. For many the job…
The U.S. Federal Air Marshal Service (FAMS) has been in the news more often than they would like recently … and as I have been researching aspects of the Federal Air Marshals recently on an unrelated topic … this is probably an ideal time to write a multi-part series on these Federal Agents in the…
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) began its organized reporting of firearms in 2006, a year in which the agency’s front line Transportation Security Officers (TSO) seized 660 guns at checkpoints. Here we are in 2015, with a look back at 2014’s numbers, where TSA TSOs seized 2,212 firearms passengers attempted to bring on board aircraft…
Yesterday fellow BoardingArea blogger Marshall Jackson wrote “Advice on How to Talk to an Airline Employee From an ex-Airline Employee,” which is really a good read, but it got me thinking. Travel can be stressful, things can happen quickly that are unfavourable for passengers, sometimes due to their mistakes, sometimes due to circumstances out…
As the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) continues to expand the deployment of its Visible Intermodal Prevention and Response (VIPR) Teams, it is also increasingly mentioning Federal Air Marshals (FAM) as part of the agency’s ground based, non-airport focused, and security operation. Looking past the legally questionable aspects of the TSA’s deployment of VIPR Teams,…
The Federal Air Marshal Service (FAMS) have at times taken a beating in the media, in the House and in the Senate for having not prevented a hijacking in progress … however despite the political posturing between the United States and Iran … the Federal Air Marshal Service may be able to cite an incident…
At the time the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) was created on the 19th of November 2001 by the Aviation and Transportation Security Act the annual cost of airport security in the private sector in the United States was an estimated US$700,000,000 … or US$849,897,815 adjusted to 2010 dollars. Presently the cost of “Aviation Security” within…
Web: www.fishfoto.com — E-Mail: fish@flyingwithfish.com 8/09/2008 – Airline & Airport Terminology Glossary 102 Airlines and Airports don’t only have whole language to themselves, they also have a series of acronyms that can often cause confusing among travelers. The acronyms can be even more complex once you enter the realm of international travel. I can come…
Every day more than 30,000 potential threats take flight, carrying more than two million potential victims, in the United States. The security presence in and around airports is apparent to all, with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) overseeing the screening of all passengers and the vast majority of airport staff, aided by local and federal…
Today’s reader mail comes from Vincent R., from Springfield, Massachusetts. Vincent writes “I have noticed the TSA in my local Amtrak station during the past few months. Amtrak Police refer to these uniformed TSA officers as TSA VIPR Teams. What exactly are they doing?” Well Vincent, over the past few years there has been…
