FlyerTalk Forums - View Single Post - How to meet the Air Marshall and other cheap tricks!
Old Aug 14, 2007, 6:52 pm
  #10  
VideoPaul
 
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: ORD
Programs: CO PLT, HH DIA
Posts: 1,461
Originally Posted by LessO2
What's the goal here?

If it makes anyone feel special to identify the FAM, I have news for you. You're not the only one. Children can spot them. FAMs know they're easily spotted, so you're not one-upping them.

Yeah, I'll admit I chuckle when I see them on a plane (something else I'm sure they see all the time), but if there's some sort of nostalgia seen about identifying them, then write the head of the FAM program and DHS in efforts to improve the program.

The thread started off noting the naiveté of the FA, which was an amusing read. But let's not turn this into another "I can spot the FAM, I'm special" thread.
They remind me of the Billy Crystal movie where they are driving around in a vehicle with the words "UNMARKED POLICE CAR" spray painted on the side.

At a radio station I worked at, one of the DJs became absoltuely convinced that I had hidden a "secret microphone" in the studio to hear what the DJs were saying after hours. He apparently ignored the several very high quality mikes that were hung on shock mounts around the room that they normally talked into--that I could take a feed off of any time I wanted.

After hearing this nonsense from the local general maanger, from my boss at corporate and also from the company's attorneys, I decided to take the episode to the most ridiculous possible extreme. I got an old mike that looked like it was about 50 years old and must have weighted 10 pounds, painted it bright yellow and hung it from the ceiling with a sign reading "HIDDEN SURVEILLANCE MICROPHONE"

I was treated to a fax from the corporate office two days later that the DJ had sent in with a picture of this device hanging from the ceiling. His comment was "See? Here's PROOF!!"

--PP
VideoPaul is offline