JFK fiasco
Oct 20, 2015, 10:54 am
#31
Join Date: Aug 2004
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Given some countries like in Europe routinely grope US bound passengers but it's still not an SS-squared.
Perhaps you were just disproportionally lucky so far? Maybe because of said "parameter set". I once had 5 SS-squared in sequence and all involved groping. I guess as with all physical things, the first time is the hardest.
Oct 20, 2015, 11:06 am
#33
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Push it as far as you feel like pushing it. The only hope of changing anything is for those few people who are irritated enough to refuse to accept this stupidity and abuse is to push back. It's so much easier to just give in to whatever they want and just get to your plane.
Maybe I actually did something once. I placed the NEXUS game with spectacular results a couple of times (at JFK). One time I had four clerks, including a supervisor, tell me the NEXUS card was no good, another time, I got the guy to take it, but then I said well why don't you know your job, why was there any problem, and he stopped me and got a supervisor to check, and the supervisor was just as dumb as him, and I wound up showing my driving license. So I wrote to this address I had, and some clerk wrote back that it wasn't supposed to happen like that, and also said something about how the clerks (only he called them officers) were on the front lines if anything happened to cause harm. I wrote back to him that they aren't on the front lines of anything, and telling them that is one of the reasons they act the way they act.
Anyway, every time I went through JFK after that until the time they put the Übermenschen lane in at T2/T4 (which basically took me away from that sort of problem) they actually did know what the NEXUS card was and passed me through like they're supposed to.
Coincidence? Probably yes, but I don't KNOW that my complaint had nothing to do with it.
Maybe I actually did something once. I placed the NEXUS game with spectacular results a couple of times (at JFK). One time I had four clerks, including a supervisor, tell me the NEXUS card was no good, another time, I got the guy to take it, but then I said well why don't you know your job, why was there any problem, and he stopped me and got a supervisor to check, and the supervisor was just as dumb as him, and I wound up showing my driving license. So I wrote to this address I had, and some clerk wrote back that it wasn't supposed to happen like that, and also said something about how the clerks (only he called them officers) were on the front lines if anything happened to cause harm. I wrote back to him that they aren't on the front lines of anything, and telling them that is one of the reasons they act the way they act.
Anyway, every time I went through JFK after that until the time they put the Übermenschen lane in at T2/T4 (which basically took me away from that sort of problem) they actually did know what the NEXUS card was and passed me through like they're supposed to.
Coincidence? Probably yes, but I don't KNOW that my complaint had nothing to do with it.
Oct 20, 2015, 11:14 am
#34
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It's a long shot, but you haven't by any chance been anywhere near Istanbul in recent months, have you?
Can I assume that there was nothing unusual about the ticket you were flying on? Not a last-minute one-way cash purchase?
It's posted elsewhere in the forum, but it's pretty common knowledge that for months now, an itinerary involving IST can lead to a few months of 'SSSS' for no reason that makes sense to anyone but presumably has to do with treating anyone who goes to Turkey (borders Syria) as suspicious whenever they fly for a few months. Unfortunately, this affects so-called 'trusted travelers' as well as everyone else.
Can I assume that there was nothing unusual about the ticket you were flying on? Not a last-minute one-way cash purchase?
It's posted elsewhere in the forum, but it's pretty common knowledge that for months now, an itinerary involving IST can lead to a few months of 'SSSS' for no reason that makes sense to anyone but presumably has to do with treating anyone who goes to Turkey (borders Syria) as suspicious whenever they fly for a few months. Unfortunately, this affects so-called 'trusted travelers' as well as everyone else.
Oct 20, 2015, 11:22 am
#35
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It's a long shot, but you haven't by any chance been anywhere near Istanbul in recent months, have you?
Can I assume that there was nothing unusual about the ticket you were flying on? Not a last-minute one-way cash purchase?
It's posted elsewhere in the forum, but it's pretty common knowledge that for months now, an itinerary involving IST can lead to a few months of 'SSSS' for no reason that makes sense to anyone but presumably has to do with treating anyone who goes to Turkey (borders Syria) as suspicious whenever they fly for a few months. Unfortunately, this affects so-called 'trusted travelers' as well as everyone else.
Can I assume that there was nothing unusual about the ticket you were flying on? Not a last-minute one-way cash purchase?
It's posted elsewhere in the forum, but it's pretty common knowledge that for months now, an itinerary involving IST can lead to a few months of 'SSSS' for no reason that makes sense to anyone but presumably has to do with treating anyone who goes to Turkey (borders Syria) as suspicious whenever they fly for a few months. Unfortunately, this affects so-called 'trusted travelers' as well as everyone else.
I flew 10 October SLC to AMS to FCO and on the return FCO-JFK-SLC. Used Delta SkyMiles for the flight so to ensure the best deal on miles, I booked them way back in April 2015. Also used my miles for my Mom and Sister. We don't look unusual either, unless you think Danish/English/Irish people look unusual.
Oct 20, 2015, 11:51 am
#38
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It's posted elsewhere in the forum, but it's pretty common knowledge that for months now, an itinerary involving IST can lead to a few months of 'SSSS' for no reason that makes sense to anyone but presumably has to do with treating anyone who goes to Turkey (borders Syria) as suspicious whenever they fly for a few months. Unfortunately, this affects so-called 'trusted travelers' as well as everyone else.
Oct 20, 2015, 11:58 am
#40
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Actually did so, because I would never treat anyone like I was treated regardless of who or what they were.
Oct 20, 2015, 12:39 pm
#42
Join Date: Aug 2012
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Oct 20, 2015, 1:13 pm
#43
Join Date: Jan 2011
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I've gotten SSSS flying PVG-DTW. I think that 1-way tickets and cash bookings both can trigger my least favorite four-letter "word".
Oct 20, 2015, 1:55 pm
#44
Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: Somewhere in Florida
Posts: 2,622
chollie beat me to it -- the secret Turkey SSSS. That was the first thing which came to mind.
Sadly, I have to agree... with the female non-Caucasian TSA employees at JFK being the worst. One of them tried to steal confiscate some food I'd packed in my carry-on at T5. Fortunately one of the male non-Caucasian screeners who was running the ETD saw what was happening and immediately grabbed a complaint form and a supervisor. He was quite passionate that I fill out the complaint form on the spot, which I did. He was quite upset about this and had stated that he'd seen the same x-ray person steal food when she was hungry before. The supervisor was useless -- he left the sticky-fingered hungry hippo on the x-ray machine, but at least my cheese from Murray's was back in my possession. Never heard back from the TSA on the incident. Also haven't seen the same woman at the T5 checkpoint since, so maybe she did get the boot.
Keep on them -- don't let this story die.
I'm all for real security, but the TSA is standing in the way of true security. I'm more scared having TSA in place than the old pre-DHS/TSA days.
I've not had to be subjected to any of the TSA or SSSS bullssssh to enter military bases, federal courthouses, military installations, federal law enforcement offices, etc. At no point has any of the security officers (who are sworn law enforcement officers at the aforementioned locations) ever barked/yelled/raised their voice at me, required me to get rid of my water, take off my shoes, etc. They've almost always been dressed in a proper suit w/tie or proper military uniform, polite yet firm, and often friendly. But I have no doubt their demeanor would change rapidly if they sensed a threat. THESE are the people we need running airport security.
Sorry for the unpleasantness, but as far as I am concerned the TSA in JFK are the worst (ATL being a close second). They are arrogant, rude, condescending, and have an incredibly bad attitude (this is above and beyond the usual and expected NYC rudeness). And, at the risk of being accused of being racist, I have found that the non-Caucasian TSA workers in JFK treat Caucasians (at least this Caucasian female) like crap (worse than the other TSA workers). For this reason I hate flying through JFK.
I'm all for real security, but the TSA is standing in the way of true security. I'm more scared having TSA in place than the old pre-DHS/TSA days.
I've not had to be subjected to any of the TSA or SSSS bullssssh to enter military bases, federal courthouses, military installations, federal law enforcement offices, etc. At no point has any of the security officers (who are sworn law enforcement officers at the aforementioned locations) ever barked/yelled/raised their voice at me, required me to get rid of my water, take off my shoes, etc. They've almost always been dressed in a proper suit w/tie or proper military uniform, polite yet firm, and often friendly. But I have no doubt their demeanor would change rapidly if they sensed a threat. THESE are the people we need running airport security.
Oct 20, 2015, 2:10 pm
#45
Join Date: Jan 2014
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If you want to fly to the US, you have to abide by US screening requirements.
Yes, it is, when your boarding pass says SSSS and you are subjected to SSSS screening.
Given some countries like in Europe routinely grope US bound passengers but it's still not an SS-squared.