The TSA has complained to U.S. airlines that crewmembers increasingly flout their privilege of enjoying minimal security screenings at U.S. airports by bringing guns and other prohibited items through checkpoints and using their privileges in other inappropriate ways. In response, the TSA has promised more questioning at crewmember security checkpoints.
TSA Warns Flight Crews Are Not Following Rules At Security Checkpoints
The warning comes via a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) briefing recently provided to Airlines for America (A4A), the lobbying arm of the U.S. airlines industry. According to a memo shared with flight attendants and pilots at United Airlines, there has been a rise in cases of airline employees flouting Known Crewmember Program (KCM) and traveling in ways or with items that are prohibited.
KCM is a system that enables TSA security officers to positively verify the identity and employment status of authorized crewmembers. Consider it like an advanced PreCheck. These on-duty crewmembers can enter via the exit, scan their badge, and unless elected for random screening, can proceed though without any bag check.
But the TSA has suggested flight crews are becoming too relaxed using the KCM system, with some openly violating the rules with contraband or other prohibited items.
Alarmingly, the TSA notes it has intercepted a “significant” number of loaded firearms.
In some instances, the firearm was not discovered until a return segment in another domestic airport or in a foreign airport where firearms are not allowed in that country. Some crewmembers are still incarcerated in a foreign jail for illegal possession of an undeclared firearm.
TSA also notes its “observation” that more crewmembers are bringing property for others through the KCM checkpoint and that crewmembers are using KCM while on personal travel to international locations, which is not permitted under the program.
Flight Attendants + Pilots Should Expect More Questioning From TSA, Increased Secondary Screening
To remedy these issues, TSA has announced two changes:
- Crewmembers using KCM access points may experience Transportation Security Officers (TSOs) and Transportation Security Inspectors (TSIs) asking questions or reminding them about the KCM regulations
- TSA will be adjusting the rate of crewmembers randomly selected for physical screening by the KCM system based on crewmember compliance performance
Sometimes I have to wonder if these moves are just to keep the TSA staff busy rather than actually keep others safe.
CONCLUSION
The TSA has noted an increase in improper usage of the KCM program and warned that it will start interviewing crewmembers and sending more to “random” security screenings due to the higher non-compliance rate.
image: ALPA
You just outlined all the ways airline staff are violating the rules, including not just knowingly carrying items for other people but even bringing undeclared firearms to international destinations, and then suggest the TSA is going to pay more attention just as busy work?!
You know my approach – no security for me knowing no one else has been screened either.
That’s complete idiocy.
Others ARE being screened for loaded guns. Not perfectly, but others ARE being screened. It’s disingenuous to say “no one else has been screened.” Complete bullshit. Shame on you.
The inability to distinguish between truth and outright lies that conveniently serve your nefarious agenda is a foundation of fascism, and is a major cause of the world’s problems today. Take a look in the mirror.
You misunderstand my comment. I know everyone is screened now. I’m willing to forgo that, even knowing that others will not be screened also.
Do you think pilots need a weapon to bring a plane down?
Not when they are a flying a weapon…
I cannot stress in any more strident terms how ridiculous is the notion that crew members are “breaking the rules”. The entire methodology of the TSA is to keep things off the airplane that might be used to overpower the crew. A crew member carrying some such item does not put the crew at risk, it violates the prime directive of the TSA and that is to control every aspect of aviation. If this persists, how long will it be before the TSA is at the door of the grocery store demanding to know why you’re there. I once had a TSA agent demand to know why I was walking around the airplane I was about to fly. 1984 has arrived, and I take the train. The TSA tried to bully into Amtrak and they were sent walking. Thank heavens.
When pilots and FA’s who don’t have permission to carry bring guns that’s a problem and it’s happening too much. I’m a FA for a major airline. Certain people get comfortable in their privileged lifestyles.
Yeah, no. A corrupt crew member could be paid to stash a weapon in the secure area for someone else to use, on a different flight and at much less risk to the crew member who may even get away with it. While a pilot could crash a plane without a weapon, other nefarious tasks like hijackings and hostage taking are much easier with a gun. Not to mention the easier drug running without screening. And while pilots could bring down the plane easily, flight attendants would likely need a weapon. No, it is not okay to look the other way and allow crew members with guns, no matter how sure you think that you are.
That’s what I thought too. Who cares if they’re breaking the rules. Federal rules and laws at that. Let’s just create more busy work for the understaffed and underpaid TSA Officers is what he thinks. This guy is a joke.
I really don’t care if they are bringing bottles of wine or large tubes of toothpaste for others. The liquid rule is stupid in the first place.
The TSA won’t say how many guns they’ve confiscated. I bet I can count the number on one hand…
You must jave some pretty huge hands. This from Fortune magazine:
The Transportation Security Administration confiscated 5,700 guns last year, the most in the agency’s 20-year history.Jan 13, 2022
Took me two minutes to find this, responsible reporting is what lacks in our great nation these days. Facts talk for themselves.
His reply about “counting on one hand” was only about FA’s using the KCM lane, not ALL passengers being screened.
*correct*
Crew here, very unhappy with this new policy. TSA has racially profiled me many times. Tsa has been rude, also asked for extra forms of id when im uniform. I feel that this is a another way to harass crews going to their jobs. What happens if we simply decline to engage with tsa and their grilling of working crews. They only have jobs because we came to fly. I think they are missing ththe point of why they are employed. I am really wondering if I decline to answer questions what happens from there.
You should try it and report back – I’ll do a story on it if they harass you.
Likely. But they fortunately confiscated my Leatherman. Thank God!
Lots of angry responses from authoritarians here in defense of TSA, a government monopoly started by a war criminal.
It sucks people are not following the rules but I am sure it is accidental. I remember operating from ABQ-DEN once and then chaining before going standby from DEN-FRA for personal use. I remembered at the last moment to leave the secure area and come back in through regular security.
Why should they have any privilege? They should be treated as any other traveler maybe having a faster lane due to their job but that’s about it.
The TSA exists to prevent terrorists gaining control of aircraft.
Guess who already has control of those same aircraft?
The TSA exists to provide an income to otherwise unemployable people without it showing on the budget as a welfare program.
That is a rather ridiculous assumption which has no validity. Do you believe the earth is flat also?
Because crew doesn’t have time to wait in a 20-3o+ minute security line, we already have to show up an hour before the flight is scheduled to leave and that’s long enough.
Hello!!!! You DO realize that if a crew member wants to take a plane down, he doesn’t need an extra large size tube of toothpaste or even a firearm to do the deed? He is strapped into a multi-ton bomb.
The pilots that have committed murder/suicide on airplanes didn’t need a firearm, a full water bottle, a pair of nail clippers or a pocketknife. They just pushed forward on the controls.
If you honestly think that pilots and FAs are sn actual risk, you’d better stop flying.
Really, Matthew?
“Sometimes I have to wonder if these moves are just to keep the TSA staff busy rather than actually keep others safe.”
Your flippant remarks take away from the serious premise of your article.
I don’t hold the TSA in high regard. This hasn’t changed in my 12 years of writing this blog.
Completely agree. They are more concerned about water bottles and other BS than anything very important. Also, the most obnoxious people you can ever have any sort of interaction.
I wonder how many people had a similar circumstance to my own. They got into my makeup bag and threw away my mascara. In the bag was also a little Victorinox knife. Got to keep the knife!
Ironic, isn’t it?
The TSA isn’t concerned about water, but there are many liquids that LOOK like water that could be, intentionally or otherwise, dangerous. They don’t really care about your mascara, either, unless it was a large amount (more than 3.4 ounces.) Passengers would bring all kinds of large containers of liquids, gels, and aerosols and the TSA would have to spend hours testing each one. Given the technology available to them, they made a rule which is quite reasonable, as far as I’m concerned. I also bring an empty water bottle and fill it up for free at the airport after I pass the TSA checkpoint.
It’s time to ditch the liquid ban. Full stop.
Recently there was an FA in front of me and went thru detectors and rang..told to check pockets and go thru again–rang again…and then 2 more times till TSA said go ahead…she dod so.. I was next and did not set off detectors but told I had to get xxtra security check as Crew Members ( the one in front setting off alarms times 4) cannot be checked…I told them that was an insane rule to chck me vs the one setting off the alarms????? Had never heard of this before but had not ever seen Crew made to have xxtra checks????
It sounds to me like what possibly was setting off the alarm was either her shoes or her wings (which are generally not required to be removed) and having come to that conclusion they made the decision to allow her to proceed. I’m not sure why anyone told you that crew cannot be checked because that’s definitely not true at all. Crew like myself get ‘random’ checks and extra screening all the time. Just because you don’t see it doesn’t mean it’s not happening.
Could this be a 4th amendment issue? Beyond showing ID and a BP, is anyone actually required to answer questions from the TSA?
Lol. Stop with the Amendment issue.
@Jerry, courts have given great deference to the so-called administrative search doctrine, but KCM would be different because it is a voluntary opt-in program.
That makes sense. You don’t have to participate in KCM.
@asdf the 4th amendment is a good one. Everyone who isn’t a law enforcement officer likes it.
I have never heard of a single incident of a flight attendant brining a firearm through KCM. My guess is these are pilots who are FFDOs (certified to carry guns in the flight deck) bringing them through non-revving or commuting without declaring them properly.
Exactly. This is 100% because of pilots but flight attendants will be affected just the same.
No they just use it to smuggle drugs.
Anything that upsets the TSA is per se good.
That is another 9/11 waiting to happen!
The rules should apply to everyone equally. No exceptions! Not, just the crew members should be in trouble for breaking the law, but the airlines should be fined as well to serve as a deterrent. Point blank! Everyone boarding a flight should be thoroughly checked. That includes passengers, crew members, and government officials.
I’ll remind you that KCM was instituted and paid for by ALPA, For PILOTS. Then graciously allowed Flight Attnedants to use the portal as well. If anything, FA KCM violations have been through the roof, which is a driving factor behind this overreaching but possibly necessary move by TSA. If biolations continue, before long, KCM will be stripped away from all of us.
As for FFDO’s, they came commute, non-rev, travel, ect with their firearms to go to / from work, and FFDO training, ect. as long as their flights are recorded / logged properly. So No. FFDO violations are NOT driving this.
Violations thru the roof, you say, but if none of them resulted in anything bad happening, then the problem must be with the violations, not the violators. I used to bring a fully loaded Electro Mechanical Field Engineer’s tool box onto the plane and store it in the overhead bin, did that for 12 years prior to 9/11, no problem ever. I could do it again tomorrow, with the same outcome, no problem. Only difference is now it’s a violation, so where’s the problem? Think about it.
No FA’s weren’t “graciously allowed”. They’re not the ones bringing restricted items through security. It’s the pilots that think they’re exempt from any and all repercussions. Nobody cares if you’re a pilot or not. Plenty of FA’s have much higher education levels then glorified CDL training. Get over yourself.
This is laughable. If you think it’s so easy and it’s just glorified CDL training, what’s stopping you from becoming one? You have absolutely no idea what people have to go though to get a pilot job. Absolutely no idea. You just need a pulse to be a flight attendant and a 4-week training course. Yet they think they know everything and they deserve the same benefits..
Catch your breath! Oh my gosh, another 9/11??? Really. Ok, snowflake, you do realize that pilots don’t need knives or guns to kill you, right? They are strapped into a multi-ton bomb. If they wanted to do another 9/11, they could just push the controls forward.
Look at the previous suicide/murders by previous pilots. They didn’t need a weapon. The airplane because a weapon.
Finally, checking “government officials” which I assume you mean federal law enforcement agents, because they are only exempt from TSA….*GASP* hold onto your seat, ARE ARMED. What would a search find? Yeppers, a firearm. The G-Men all fly armed.
Flying for you seems too nerve wracking…maybe consider a bus
A disgruntled PSA employee once brought a gun aboard a LAX-SFO flight and killed the pilots, causing the BAe 146 to crash, killing everyone. Airline employees are a risk, albeit not a huge risk.
You do realize that the shooter, David Burke, was a ticketing agent and not a pilot or FA? He therefore would not be exempt from the security lines. He brought a gun aboard, as anyone else could, before the TSA and screenings.
Pilots are strapped into a multi-ton bomb behind protective doors. If they want to kill you, they don’t need an external weapon. They lock the door and push forward with the control column. How does the weapon help them at all? Please explain.
That is incorrect my friend, “he was a ticket agent so he was not exempt from screening”. That incident occurred prior to 9/11 thus TSA did not exist. At that time any airline employee from the ramp employees, agents, pilots, F/As could walk through the exit lane and later access doors which required a Security Identification badge. I could tell you some stories as I’m sure many other airline employees can from that era.
And what about the crash ax in the cockpit of every plane that we have access to? TSA is a joke.
I cannot for the life of me understand how bringing a loaded weapon to the airport does not result in immediate arrest and banishment from flying forever. Any pilot should immediately lose their job as well as be incarcerated.
I don’t know if you are old enough but after Sept 11, 2001 pilots were allowed under certain rules (don’t ask me what ) to bring a gun on board.
I’m still pissed that I had to give up a small jar of jam I purchased for a friend who couldn’t buy it locally.
TSA logic: as a crewmember (with ID) in uniform my normal size can of shaving cream is okay.
As a crewmember (with ID) but not in uniform, my shaving cream is now a security threat and must be confiscated.
Crazy, isn’t it?
Time to scrap the silly 2006 liquid ban. 16 years is enough…
Agree. Scrap the TSA pre-check membership. It’s just a scheme for the government to make us pay extra for flying.
All we need now is a pilot that’s denied boarding his own plane…another cancelled flight.
The amount of misinformation here is truly shocking. A lot of this takes a simple 5 minutes of google searching folks, let’s do better.
As a current ATP Pilot who has KCM Privileges, there’s more to digest here. Yes, we get a special lane where we fast track and typically avoid security unless randomed. However if you think that we should be sent to a regular security line 100% of the time because “we should all be treated the same” then why are you flying? We undergo advanced training to safely get people front point A to point B and have had extensive background checks and other security measures to obtain KCM. Oh another thing, if you thought your flights were delayed now, having to screen all crew members would be a nightmare.
The gun issue is most likely related to FFDO violations, not your average Joe bringing a Glock through KCM for a weekend outing. Still not acceptable, however again nowhere near the same as a passenger bringing a loaded gun through security. All FFDOs go through an advanced course with DHS and are highly trained in the use of their firearm.
The violation that has been more of an issue is crew members bringing other peoples luggage through KCM. This is unacceptable and causes a large security risk and in my mind these people should lose their KCM privileges. If I follow the rules, but a couple people don’t, why am I getting punished?
What annoys me at the end of the day is being randomed more frequently is NOT “protecting security interests” at all. It’s a punishment for the group because of a few who spoiled the process. I understand it’s a privilege for us, and I abide by the rules the best I can, however this new memo is going to create more issues in an understaffed airport every time.
And with my Global Entry/TSA precheck, I also have additional background checks. I have also held a TS/SCI security clearance twice, and I still have to have my bags scanned and go through a metal detector. I fly almost weekly for work. Why should I have to go through extra screening at the airport and you don’t?
Really Mark, you are comparing your little TSA Precheck to what a pilot goes through? Ok. Let’s play a game. You want to take a plane down. You as a passenger: you need a weapon. As a pilot? Lock the door and push the control column forward. No need for an external weapon, because your plane IS the weapon. What good does a weapon do for the pilot? Please explain your theory.
I suggest you research what a TS/SCI clearance is, and the background investigation that is required. I also have family members that are pilots…they go through medical screenings every year, but it is just a physical, nothing mental. After Germanwings and China Eastern, you would think they start doing a mental screening
While yes, a pilot doesn’t need a weapon, doesn’t mean that they shouldn’t have to go through x-rays and have bag scanned. They can skip to the front, but a free pass makes no sense, especially when they used to make the elderly and kids take off jackets and shoes
Random checks of KCMs are a joke. I assume the purpose is to discourage intentionally bringing prohibited items through the KCM check point. But most airports don’t escort you to the regular screening if you get selected for random. So if I’m carrying my 5 pounds of C4 through KCM, (Just to be clear, this is hypothetical. I have never knowingly taken anything prohibited through KCM) and I get stopped for a random screening, I’m just going to take it back to my car and bring it through another day.
TSA is a joke. Go
Ahead and do away with KCM. We can all sit back and enjoy the collapse of what’s left of aviation. Lol. TSA needs to get it together. Its not the crews fault. A large portion of TSA workers are under qualified and very poorly trained. I wont go into TSA lack of people skills.
I suggest you research what a TS/SCI clearance is, and the background investigation that is required. I also have family members that are pilots…they go through medical screenings every year.
While yes, a pilot doesn’t need a weapon, doesn’t mean that they shouldn’t have to go through x-rays and have bag scanned. They can skip to the front, but a free pass makes no sense, especially when they used to make the elderly and kids take off jackets and shoes
The irony is that a huge percentage of TSA staff have criminal records yet they are out in charge of our national security. Do you know how many weapons get by them from passengers going through regular screening? TSA is a proverbial joke. Their policies differ from airport to airport, terminal to terminal and agent to agent. They are on power trips and need to be reigned in.
What about the rampers with SIDA access. They don’t even need to go through any kind of TSA screening at all. They literally walk through a door and are in the secure area. No TSA, no x-ray, not metal detector, no body scan…nothing. What about them, they could easily stash a weapon for someone else. Hell, many rampers have been arrested for being involved in drug smuggling rings, and some admitted to smuggling explosives. Yet us flight crews, that already have access to the one area of the aircraft that is to be protected at all costs are the problem??? It really boggles my mind. TSA in a nutshell for you folks.
I completely agree. I’ve been on the employee bus and a lot of times, the stench of pot coming off these rampers is unbearable. And we’re supposed to trust them with our safety as well. Just a bunch of security theater.
Wow, you, actually, have no idea about crew members. That’s a shame. Your ability to do good is infinite and you choose to abuse it. Again, WOW.
It’s also a “violation” for a commuter to use kcm before their commuting flight to work and then work an international flight in the same day.