In the spring of 2004, following the commuter rail bombings in Madrid, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) began devising a plan to “protect the Nation’s transportation systems and ensure freedom of movement for people and commerce,” for the railroads and mass transit systems in the United States. The result of the TSA’s efforts to increase…
The Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) Transportation Security Officers (TSO) have the difficult job of searching for contraband items passengers may pass through security with. Along with TSA TSOs searching for prohibited items, the agency’s Behavior Detection Officers (BDO) watch and interact with passengers to determine passengers that they determine to be a threat to aviation…
One week ago a new petition appeared on the White House’s website, the petition is to “Abolish the TSA, and use its monstrous budget to fund more sophisticated, less intrusive counter-terrorism intelligence.” To date, this petition has received more than 24,000 supporters … which leads to the question of “Why?” The Transportation Security Administration…
Yesterday Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano announced that children, 12 and younger, would no longer be required to remove their shoes at Transportation Security Administration (TSA) security checkpoints and be able to have their hands swabbed for explosives rather than be subject to a pat down. The TSA’s move to allow children to…
Getting from the ‘land side’ to the ‘air side’ of an airport security checkpoint can be frustrating, especially for infrequent flyers. Airport security checkpoints in the US and around the world may have different designs, but the process of getting through a checkpoint with your belonging is always the same. This reader mail comes…
Since the Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) implemented its ‘enhanced pat down’ screening procedures in late 2010 the legality of the agency’s authority to execute enhanced pat downs has been consistently called into question. While the TSA has the legal authority to carry out administrative searches without probable cause, as I wrote about in November…
Anyone who flies with any frequency knows the drill at the airport, shoes off, jacket off, 3-1-1 bag out, laptop out, leave your knives in your checked bag and make sure your H&K MP5 is packed in a secured case and is declared with the airline. All the fun of the airport screening process…
Since the inception of the Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) Behavior Detection Officers (BDO) program in 2003, it has been less than effective by design and deployment. Currently, TSA BDOs seek out potential security threats through Screening Passengers by Observation Techniques (SPOT). SPOT focuses on involuntary physical and physiological reactions, such as micro facial expressions,…
I don’t tend to post one-liner jokes on Flying With Fish, but sometimes something’s are to good to pass up … The Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) policy and procedures covers a vast range of topics to address passenger security, including outlining the procedure for screening service animals. Among the animals directly addressed in the…
A week ago I wrote TSA’s 25,000 Security Lapses & How They Can Be Reduced and referenced the use of Aztec barcodes as a security feature stating “TSA has not worked with airlines to implement these impossible to forge barcodes.” I received a few comments and emails stating Aztec barcodes could be forged. Some…
