Transportation security officer

LAX Shooting – Part 1 – Securing The Airport

This past Friday, the 1st of November, Paul Ciancia walked into Los Angeles International Airport’s Terminal 3 with a singular mission, his mission was to shoot and kill Transportation Security Administration (TSA) employees.  Upon arriving at the TSA Travel Document Checker (TCD) station at the entrance to the security checkpoint, Mr. Ciancia opened his bag…

The Resurgence Of “Keep Your Boarding Pass Out In The Passenger Screening Area”

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has long since done away with the redundant process of requiring passengers to present their boarding pass to a Transportation Security Officer (TSO) before passenger screening, after they have already presented their identification and travel documents to the TSO acting as a travel document checker.   The process of double…

“Should the TSA pat down kids in a wheelchair?”, This Is The Wrong Question

Before I dive into this post, discussing another post by consumer advocate and travel expert Chris Elliott this week, I should note that I both like and respect Chris.  This is not a dig on Chris or his opinions. We both cover the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) regularly, we both have strong opinions on the…

Is The TSA’s New Passenger Advocate Role A Good Thing?

On the 13th of February 2012 Senators Charles Schumer (D-NY) and Susan Collins (R-ME) introduced the Restoring Integrity and Good-Heartedness in Traveler Screening Act, or “RIGHTS Act,” addressing the need for the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to have a passenger advocate on site, at every airport, to address immediate passenger screening issues.  The RIGHTS Act…

Is A Talk Radio Host On A Secret TSA List Or Flagged For Something Else?

Ian Freeman, the co-host of Free Talk Live, a national libertarian political talk radio show broadcast on more than 100 radio stations, and four television stations, and candidate for State Representative from Keene, New Hampshire,  makes an interesting claim … he claims he is on a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Super Secret Special Searched list….

What Does The TSA Mean By “Resistance” In A Pat Down?

Yesterday reader Ron Bonner asked “exactly what [does] TSA means by “resistance” when telling a passenger they will feel up to their “resistance” during a pat down. I am interested in knowing if a standard TSA Pat Down requires the screener to make physical contact with a persons penis, scrotum, labia, anal region, or breasts….

Curious Case Of Explosive Contaminated TSA Gloves

Anyone who has been selected for secondary screening, or bag screening, by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is familiar with the agency’s procedures for swabbing of a Transportation Security Officer’s (TSO) gloves for traces of explosives following a pat-down or search of a bag.   But what does a passenger do when the gloves TSA…

Congressman Claims TSA Assault During Screening

On a recent flight from Texas’s San Antonio International Airport Congressman Francisco Canseco (R-TX) claims a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Transportation Security Office (TSO) assaulted him during a random pat down.   During the screening process Rep. Canseco claims the TSO’s screening process became too uncomfortable causing him to move the screener’s hand to the…

Costs Of Private vs Gov’t Passenger Screening In The U.S.

The United States Government, like all organizations with operational expenses, is seeking to reduce its costs while creating a more effective workflow.  As the Government seeks to reduce its debt, trim excess spending and bring its operational costs down, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) would appear among the most resistant to change.   While the…