Boggie Dog

I think full screening could be accomplished using the assets now available instead of wasting those assets on useless activities like BDO programs and screeners walking around inside of terminals in groups of 2 or 3 harassing people who have already been screened. How many times have comments, other than mine, mentioned TSA employees standing around checkpoints texting, chatting, and doing other none work related things? Then add in the excessive administrative staffing that TSA has accumulated and the millions of dollars of gear that doesn't work that TSA has wasted taxpayer monies on and all kinds of possibilities are possible if that money and manpower was used more effectively.

Effective screening isn't being done because TSA management is either incapable or incompetent.

As far as missile attacks go it is pretty clear that just taking down airplanes is not an active goal of terrorists. It might be in the future but if it was today it would have already happened.

9/11 wasn't about taking down airplanes but using those airplanes as guided missiles against highly visible targets. And they succeeded!

Section 107

- We've discussed the first part ad nauseam.
- True.
- It is very curious why it hasn't happened in the last 14 years in the West. But if it did, it would have far greater effect on western economies than what has happened to date.
- Yes, they did. Spectacularly. One can only wonder why they haven't carried out anything even 1/10th as spectacular since then (London bombings and Boston notwithstanding).

Boggie Dog

Yes it's been discussed and going on 14 years TSA has failed in its duties to secure airports.

Seems for $8,000,000,000.00 annually taxpayers should expect more of TSA.

magzan

This was already tried, see https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/2002_Mombasa_attacks
and also nowadays airlines avoid for obvious reason the airspace in Syria and Iraq.

Boggie Dog

Kinda of curious why you left out MH17?

idahosharky

This is a waste of Time and money, this is all about training the sheepel to conform...and allow the government grow. The cockpit has been secured....so who cares if half the plane is full of terrorist????? they can not get in the cockpit now. Seriously, if the terrorists want to make an attack, they can do way more collateral damage at a whole lot of different venues. I am glad I took the red pill.

Randyk47

While you might be correct I'd still have to wonder if a terrorist really can't get into the cockpit. How do we know that? If that is the only obstacle then seems to me they'd concentrate on how to overcome that obstacle and probably find a way. Maybe they'd be satisfied to just bring a plane down on final approach over a crowded city. I really don't know and certainly don't think TSA is the best thing since sliced bread but having been in the Pentagon on 911 and having lost seven friends I'm glad not to have had to go through that again or some more.

Boggie Dog

Key would be how the airlines control the door codes, how often they are changed, and how many people have access to the codes. Inserting a person to obtain codes should be an achievable.

rolltribe

Effective? Yes, but they certainly have gaping holes.
Efficient? Not really. They are really shooting themselves in the foot with TSA Pre. It was a gift from God when they started it and it was only available to real FF's with status. This mean the people going through the lanes knew what they were doing and it ran smoothly. Now it just seems like the TSA is using it as a means of extra income by charging people to enroll. It seems every time I travel someone not familiar with the TSA Pre process is holding the line up. Then they have times when they randomly direct people from the regular line to the pre line. Its almost like the TSA is using this as a way of making money by trying to get everyone to pay the fee to sign up. It would be interesting to see the #'s on what percent of applicants are rejected. The pre lines generally take much longer than a regular premier/elite line at major hubs.

One last gripe... They need to find a way to get real TSA people to manage the lines. Having one of the third party morons hired by the airline managing the lines is useless.

chx1975

Uh, the kind of weapon that took down MH17 is near impossible to get into the US / acquire illegally. A shoulder fired weapon near an airport is a realistic nightmare but say driving away from a military base with all the vehicles of a SAM only happens in fiction (if at all -- perhaps it's too out of the world even for fiction ).

Also, it's really not the mandate of the TSA, it's kinda hard to smuggle an 1500-2000 lbs missile (not to mention the launcher) in your suitcase

JDiver

If they have prevented thousands of firearms from getting on commercial aircraft, there must have been tens of thousands of firearms that did make it onto airplanes, given the actual percentiles documented of failing to detect simulated firearms secreted in various carry on bags.

Boggie Dog

Does it really matter if the weapon is a SAM, Stinger, or Javelin? The end result is likely to be the same if the aircraft is within range.

But I do agree with you on being able to obtain a SAM battery, not likely at all not to mention the problems with trying to hide such a unit.

I don't know how hard it would be to get a Shoulder Fired missile but would hope that it is near impossible in the U.S.. If a person with ill intent did have one and I think the outcome is fairly certain of success in downing an aircraft.

But is just the downing of an airplane really the final objective of a terrorist group or is it something much larger as was done on 9/11/2001?

mia

I am more satisfied with the TSA than with the design of this survey. Why is "0" not a valid answer to a question such as:

chx1975

I would presume it's easier to smuggle in an SA-7 than stealing a Stinger or a Javelin. But I have no clue of what the objective of a terrorist group is -- especially since we haven't see any foreign terrorist group doing anything since 9/11...

Boggie Dog

The fact that none of these types of attacks have happened in the U.S. indicates that attempts haven't been made, or that they have been made and law enforcement interdicted the attack and kept it secret.

Not saying that such an attack isn't possible. Smuggling a weapon in from Mexico through one of the tunnels would be the easiest way to introduce the weapon.