I went through the AA checkpoint in Las Vegas last week and was just floored by the inefficiency. First, there was an hour long wait just to get to the first person who checks your boarding pass and identification (I have long since given up on my "Oh, so the terrorists can make bombs but can't get fake ID's?" argument). Since that process takes so long, there is then a huge gap in the and only a few people waiting to get through the metal detectors at any time. Then, you have to hold your boarding pass in your hand as you pass through the metal detector to be inspected by another employee. Finally, not even five feet in front of the metal detector, sits an employee who checks the boarding pass yet again. There is no way that anyone could make it through the metal detector without being checked, so I can't imagine what that third person is doing there.

Wouldn't it be better if that third person at the desk served as a "rover," moving up and down the hour-long line and checking people's id's while they waited? He could put a special stamp on the BP. This would clear up the bottleneck at the first ID check, as well as the people standing around right after the metal detector.

Mike