Jet Blue, TSA Settle in T-Shirt Case

JetBlue Airways and two officials with the U.S. Transportation Security Administration have paid $240,000 to settle charges that they illegally discriminated against an Iraqi-born U.S. resident who was barred from a flight until he covered his T-shirt, which carried an Arabic phrase, his attorneys announced yesterday.

The settlement paid Friday to Raed Jarrar, 30, of the District, ranks among the largest of its kind since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, according to the American Civil Liberties Union, which represented him. The payment came as another U.S. airline apologized to nine Muslim American passengers from the Washington area who were removed from a New Year's Day flight out of Reagan National Airport, prompting a discrimination complaint by a Muslim civil rights group. - Washington Post

The shirt, which reads "We will not be silent" in Arabic and English, is a bit provocative, but this guy has every right to wear it. The TSA, by nature, has to be strict on these issues.

3 Things Not To Say/Do Around An Airport

#3. Carry "plants" around the airport - A couple was seen carrying marijuana near a checkpoint at Logan. When asked by a lower level employee what to do about the situation, a certain T.S.A. employee (whom I've interviewed before) responded "I'm not a botanist, but I think I know." The couple was allowed to board the plane, but the weed was left behind. The T.S.A. is known to having resold prohibited items in large quantities so one has to wonder if this is an exception.

#2. Ask a wise-ass question about the prohibited items list - Of course, there is always that one guy. That guy commented, "I don't see machine gun on the prohibited items list" to which a certain T.S.A. employee responded "because it's not all inclusive." "You won't find grenade launcher on there either, but does that mean you can carry one?"

#1. Make a joke on the airplane - Two buddies just boarded their plane. One was already seated while another was still placing his bag in the overhead bin. The latter said to the former, "they didn't find the bomb." Keep in mind that this was shortly after 9/11 -- not a good time to make jokes of this nature. The man didn't try to keep it so nobody else could hear him. A woman seated one row in front of them did and immediately left the plane to go tell security. As a result, all of the passengers had to be evacuated off of the plane while the bomb squad searched it.

Turbulence Ahead For Airlines

New York - America's aviation system could be at risk of collapsing by the beginning of next year.

That warning from aviation experts has prompted some industry leaders to call for re-regulation, something considered almost heresy until now. Others are urging Washington to do more to rein in the oil speculators pushing up fuel costs.

But there is agreement among airline officials and analysts that Washington and the two presidential candidates need to recognize the severity of the crisis and take some action now to avert an economically crippling collapse in the near future.

"Unless something is done to move toward some kind of fix, we're going to see every one of our major airlines in bankruptcy," says Robert Crandall, former chairman of American Airlines. "If that isn't enough of a crisis to alert everybody, then I don't know what it will take." - Christian Science Monitor

The TSA isn't helping either; flights can be/are very easily canceled because of security threats. Flights also aren't filling up the way they used to (read, wasting gas).

On The Topic of Airport Security

The following is an interview with an employee of the Transportation Security Administration at Logan Airport in Boston.

WÉ: When did airport security become a major issue?
TSA: Ever since the hijackings of the 1950s there has been some level of security. The last ten years have required improvements and the last six has required the Feds to step in. Airlines used to handle their own security with FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) oversight. With the TSA came research money for new X-Rays, explosive detectors, and people scanners.
WÉ: How is airport security in the United States right now?
TSA: Always on high alert. The aviation sector is in the orange, or high, risk level right now. [Logan] is [at a higher level] than other airports. Take a look at this little blurb on the TSA's official website: "Although numerous arrests have been made in the U.K. to disrupt and neutralize this threat, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is taking a number of heightened protective measures to ensure the continued safety and security of our international and domestic air travel."
WÉ: Is there still a terror threat at the airport?
TSA: Yes. We have verified the presence of groups casing airports looking for weaknesses.
WÉ: If these terrorist groups get by, is it because they are extremely intelligent in exploiting airport security weaknesses or is it because TSA employees are not effectively performing their duties?
TSA: An airport has thousands of employees, which is a more likely route in for terrorists. Security is too tight at the checkpoints. Don't forget that the TSA's screening standards are set in Washington.
WÉ: When one thinks of airport security, he/she often thinks of invasive screening and mistreatment. What do you have to say about that?
TSA: We are certainly not invasive. As a matter of fact, we are prohibited searching "sensitive areas" -- which very often are the places people hide things. Mistreatment, there is some of that and I grant you that we address that. In my dealings, I usually run into the "Do you know who I am's" and the wannabe Civil Rights Lawyers. Have you heard of the woman in D.C? She ran to all the media outlets she could. She was a bitch because she poured her water on the floor and created a hazard for others. [The TSA] threw her out and called the cops. TSA then countered with the true side of the story with video footage. We showed her pouring the bottle on the floor. She used to be a Secret Service Agent. She led us to believe that she still was and thus deserved special treatment.
WÉ: How often are there "mishaps"?
TSA: Take a look at these statistics from the TSA website from April 28 to May 4: 11 passengers were arrested due to suspicious behavior or fraudulent travel documents 17 firearms found at checkpoints 4 artfully concealed prohibited items found at checkpoints 21 incidents that involved a checkpoint closure, terminal evacuation or sterile area breach 14 disruptive passengers on flights.
WÉ: What is the deal with the carry on water limitations and such?
TSA: Since September of 2006, there has been a 3 oz or less toiletries limitation. After you pass through security, you can bring whatever kind of drink you want on the plane. The first day that the policy was put into place, we took everything. Later that week, we lightened up a bit. When people heard about the threat, nobody complained. The public has short term memory loss, though. It didn't take long for people to start asking "since when?!"
WÉ: Do you have any final thoughts?
TSA: We remind people that along with terrorists, we are the look out for stupid people. You know, the people who endanger everyone with their actions and belongings. As I tell people, it's not you, it is the guy next to you (the stupid, the drunk, and the angry). Some of their stuff could bring down a plane.

GAO: Investigators pass security at 19 airports with bomb parts

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Investigators with bomb-making components in their luggage and on their person were able to pass through security checkpoints at 19 U.S. airports without detection, according to the Government Accountability Office.

GAO officials are expected to testify about the investigation Thursday before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

The investigators reported that most of the time security officers followed TSA policies and procedures, but investigators were able to take advantage of "weaknesses in TSA [Transportation Security Administration] procedures and other vulnerabilities."

"These weaknesses were identified based on a review of public information," the planned GAO testimony says .

Investigators concluded that if they had attempted the same test at other airports, they would have evaded detection.

Logan Airport Security Report

Airport security is best described as this: a no-win situation. You can never do good enough of a job for half of the public. The other doesn't even understand why you are there. In plain English, one half thinks you suck and the other half doesn't think you suck enough.

Do what they say, get on your plain and have a nice flight. Do you know why you are taking your shoes off? Do you know why you are giving up your liquids? Do you know why everybody gets checked? They lost two airliners to terrorists posing as pregnant women with bombs stracked around their stomachs. They were pretty, they were white and they were women. Not your typical terrorists, I'd say.

Who is responsible for making you sure you are safe at the airport? They are known as the TSA, or the Transportation Security Administration. Airlines, pre 9/11, handled their own security. Nowadays the government is mandating to take over airport security. In 2002, the TSA was established across the country. Logan Airport right here in Boston has some of the best security. Do you wonder why? Two planes left from Logan; two towers got hit a little while later. You understand.

- As told anonymously to Glen Maganzini by a local airport official

JFK areas evacuated after breach

From the Boston Globe:

A man breached security at John F. Kennedy International Airport on Thursday, forcing parts of two terminals to be evacuated, authorities said.

The man, who had not been found by Thursday evening, circumvented security at Terminal 3 at about 4:15 p.m., the Transportation Security Administration said in an announcement.

Way to go, sketchball. Now airport security will get even more ridiculous. Anyone walking into an airport will be led through security by a guard pointing a gun at you.