More pilots and now a group of university scientists are protesting a TSA security directive that will soon make full body scanners the primary method of passenger screening at airports across the United States. If my constant haranguing about civil liberties...
Should the TSA Ban Wi-Fi and Cell Phones Onboard Airplanes?
Obviously, my answer is NO. But it’s not like the TSA takes my opinions to heart… Here’s the latest buzz: mobile phones and Wi-Fi may be used to blow up an airplane, so the TSA is considering banning them....
TSA to Ban Toner Cartridges Tomorrow
Security Directive 1554-10-05 is out: starting tomorrow, November 8, the TSA is expected to announce that airline passengers will be prohibited from flying with printer ink and toner cartridges, sized at 16oz (by volume) or larger. This ban will cover...
AA Pilots Revolt Against the TSA
Check out this letter from Captain Ed Bates, president of the Allied Pilots Association (APA), which represents 11,000 American Airlines pilots: Fellow Pilots, In response to increased threats to civil aviation around the world, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has...
TSA’s Mysterious New Pat-Down Policy
Even before news came about the plot to blow up US-bound cargo jets on Friday, the TSA had announced another security enhancement: a "new hand-sliding technique" when it comes to pat-down searches. The TSA is smart enough to know that Americans...
ExpressJet Pilot Faces Job Termination for Refusing to Walk Through TSA Nude-O-Scope
First, you’ve got to read Michael Roberts’ account of the incident. Roberts is a Houston-based ExpressJet pilot who recently refused to walk through the TSA’s Advanced Imaging Technology (a clever Orwellian term for machines colloquially known as Nude-O-Scopes) at...
TSA Misses 200,000 Volt Stun Gun in Woman’s Carry-On Bag
Another story to add to the "TSA competence" file. Earlier this month a woman named Jen (who fearing reprisals from the TSA, has refused to provide her last name [yet still proactively contacted a local television station…]) forgot to...
The Story Behind the Nine Passengers Thrown Off a United Flight Sunday Night
For two days, all we heard was that UA refused to transport nine passengers on a Sunday evening flight from Dulles to Tampa due to security concerns. Few details filtered out and we were left to speculate what really...
What NOT to wear when you are flying in first class!
Maybe the guy was just protesting intrusive TSA search protocols or lost a poker bet, but I have to question what motivates someone to wear this on a plane. Then again, I am they type of traveler who won’t...
United States Will Charge Tourists $14 to "Promote Tourism"
Sometimes, I wonder why members of Congress display so little common sense. Then I remember what it was like to work for them. In an astute move displaying superlative wisdom and unparalleled foresight, Congress has voted to levy a $14 tax on...
Feds Come Clean: Admit to Storing Body Image Scans
Last week on Upgrd 66 I voiced skepticism about TSA assurances that body scan images are immediately deleted and never stored. After all, if something was found on a passenger wouldn’t the image have to be stored to have...
Continental tests self-boarding at IAH
Tired of the grouchy attitude or bad breath of your gate agent? Well now there’s a solution if you’re flying through Houston! Self-boarding is being tested select Continental gates at IAH. Lufthansa has already offered self-boarding for years, as do...
TSA Antics at Washington Dulles
I returned home from Buenos Aires today and had to endure a torturous 45-minute wait in the immigration line today at Dulles. After my poor experiences in Montreal, I vowed to apply for Global Entry: only $100 for five...
TSA Recruiting on Pizza Boxes
Some call it creative. Others call it a sign of desperation. I call it stupid. The TSA is hiring at Washington Dulles and Reagan National and has resorted to a peculiar medium of advertising…pizza boxes. photo courtesy: Michelle Basch, WTOP...
More Encroachment by the TSA
Yeah, I’m going to get political again. Remember this post over a month ago? After the Faisal Shahzad incident I warned that the TSA would soon be taking over the passenger watchlist. Now this from the TSA blog: Secure Flight...
Eating Humble Pie After “Incident” at SFO Security Checkpoint
I had to cut short my trip to the Bay Area this weekend and fly home to attend the funerals of two family friends who died this week. For the first time in years, I purchased a walk-up ticket...
More Power to the TSA?
Faisal Shahzad, the man who attempted to detonate a car bomb in Times Square earlier this week, almost made it out of the country. It wasn’t until he drove to JFK, checked in, cleared security, and boarded his Emirates...
Woman Arrested for Trying to Save Her 93 Year-Old Mother’s Applesauce from the TSA at Burbank Airport
Take a look at this YouTube video of an incident at my home airport of Burbank: The narrator, who sounds like the lawyer for the woman, tells a convincing story. What say you? Some more context: An incident at...
United FA prohibits Internet communication on p.s. flight for "security reasons"
It seems a lot of bloggers on the Huffington Post fly on United. Yesterday, tech journalist John Battelle was minding his own business, video chatting with his wife and children from 30-plus thousand feet in the air, when a...
"Explosive" Honey Shuts Down California Airport
A golden substance found in the checked baggage of a man traveling from Bakersfield, CA to Milwaukee, WI that tested positive for TNT and TATP (plane go boom) led to the evacuation and closure of BFL for several hours. Turns out the...
