Bolding mine: Don't you mean suspects?

LOL, that would probably be more accurate.

Hi Ross

I would like to know why there isn't consistency as to how TSA operates in various airports. My husband has artificial knees and we know he is going to set off the metal detector every time.

LAX - my home airport - I am lucky that the TSA personnel are quite pleasant and try to make their time with you as efficient and least invasive as possible.

LAS - Twice the male agent who did the "pat down" did so, to the point where my husband felt violated and told me that he should have gotten dinner and a movie first for how aggresively they went after his privates.

BOS - Belligerent male agent who told us that we should be grateful to him because he served in the military. We were like - What??? I actually sent in a complaint about this clown and got the standard response from TSA that we appreciate your feedback.

BDL - Pre Check had shut down for the day but we were identified as pre check. The female agent was barking about getting my liquids out. I was confused and said we were pre-check. She had to make her point that regardless I had to do whatever she asked. She was on a power trip.

I could go on, but you get the idea that the training for agents and how they act varies by airport. It would be nice to see standardization that includes treating people like customers (as they do at LAX) as opposed to acting like dictators (other airports I have mentioned) on a power trip.

Well, it happens. I just hit my twenty-first year of FF elite membership, and also just clocked up two million FF miles on oneworld airlines. Although a minority of my flying has been in the US, I am hardly an infrequent visitor there. I have been on FT for almost three years and other travel fora before that - and I hadn't heard of it or experienced it.

It is entirely reasonable to give someone the benefit of the doubt. Let's do that with Ross, and not attack him or his credibility just because he hasn't experienced one particular issue.

After all, I hope I am right in saying that we want his help, feedback and insight. Does anyone really think that attacking him personally or alienating him is going to help? Really???

I agree with a post above. You have already lost your credibility here if you claim that you've never heard of TDC's playing the "name game." People here want honesty. If you can't give an answer or you need to look into it, say so. This will go 10x further than hand waving.

Unless you get to bypass the checkpoint entirely as a TSA employee, I'm very skeptical that you've never been asked to say your name by a TDC. For example, I've been expressly told at LGA, BOS, SFO (not TSA, I know), SAT, PDX, DCA, ORD, and SEA that if I don't say my name, I won't be allowed through the checkpoint. I challenge the TDC every time, and only once (at LGA) was I allowed through the checkpoint without saying my name, after involving a 3-striper.

Welcome!

I found this thread by accident as I usually just read the debate forum. I was attracted as the last post featured was in this thread. I was intrigued.

I am late to the game, so I read the play by play wrap up to get an idea of how this is going.

My limited analysis: Lot of questions, few answers, move to debate forum as only about 10% trusted traveler.

As I used to tell my youth basketball players when they would try something new with less than spectacular results, "Good idea, poor execution. Now, let's learn how to execute."

Ask the mods to start a wiki for this thread and we will track the questions and answers for you.

My questions:
1. When you have already been screened and admitted to the sterile area, under what circumstances can the TSA stop you and screen you again? Can they penalize you (by refusing to let you board a plane) if you do not consent to additional random screening at the gate? Examples of such gate searches are:
A. ID checks
B. 'Testing' liquids (i.e. a cup of coffee or bottle of water you bought inside the airport)
C. Additional bag searches
D. Additional hand swabs
I understand TSA has the power/authority to perform an administrative search at the checkpoint, but what authority do they have to perform further (random or non-random) searches within the sterile area? Are passengers ever required by law to submit to a request/order for additional search/seizures inside the sterile area of the airport? Can we be prevented from flying if we do not consent to additional random searches/seizures? Or can we just decline the search in accordance with our 4th and 5th amendment rights and fly without penalty?

2. In another thread, you posted a policy regarding TSA searching for and questioning large amounts of cash, and you said this was still the policy in effect. However, the TSA settled a court case a few months after that policy was posted. How has the policy been changed in light of the Bierfeldt settlement? Or has TSA failed to change its policy in light of the Bierfeldt settlement?

3. Can you please clarify whether (or under what circumstances) TSA can ever seize nitroglycerin pills from a passenger?

4. Can you please clarify whether or not I am allowed to carry on ClearCare contact cleaner, a medical solution that is 3% hydrogen peroxide?

5. Can we ever be required/forced to go to a private room for TSA to conduct a search? Or can we insist that any searches be done in public in accordance with the administrative search doctrine?

I second (or third, or fourth?) the idea for a wiki.

+1000

Makes it easier to see the questions, identify which ones have been answered, better visibility if an answer requires further clarification. Similar wikis have been extraordinarily helpful on other forums.

Bierfeldt was before he joined the TSA. I am willing to wager that he's not even heard of it.

Bierfeldt wrote at the Huffington Post:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/steve-..._b_352660.html

FT member Ari posted this in 2011, in response to, of all people, janetdoe!!

http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/16842558-post48.html

Ross's post makes it sound like it is TSA SOP to automatically summon LEs if 'bulk cash' is discovered.

Bierfeldt's comment makes it sound like it is none of TSA's business, period. Leaf through the bills to make sure there are no 'artfully concealed' weapons and let the pax go. Bulk cash is not a threat to aviation safety.

Ari's post sounds like TSOs have an obligation to determine the amount of cash (presumably only on an international ticket) to determine whether or not to summon CBP, and a further obligation to interrogate any pax with 'bulk cash' to determine, based on the TSO's trained judgment, if the $ is likely related to criminal activity or not.

Sounds to me like business as usual: the rules are regarding 'bulk cash' at the checkpoint are whatever a particular TSO decides they are.

Question:

I was told by a TSA agent at SAT that my carry-on bag should not be locked when I take it through the check point. What is the official TSA policy on this and what is the issue with securing my luggage?

The 'new' SOP says that TSOs are supposed to do x, y, and z when they encounter a large amount of cash. TSOs are obligated to follow the SOP. I don't remember the exact wording of the SOP, but it made clear that large amounts of cash are not suspect per se, and that neither the traveler nor the cash can be seized (detained) at the checkpoint by TSA. TSA is supposed to let the traveler and his stuff go after the WEI search. If TSOs have suspicions, they convey them to LE and what LE does after that doesn't concern TSA.

Every rule is like that with TSA. But we haven't had frequent publicized incidents like we've had in the past, so the new SOP seems to be working.

I know you're looking for Ross to respond, but I figured I would chime in. I lock my carry-on on every flight. About 30% of the time they have to open it and inspect it (it's usually packed with wires/cameras). I've never had any TSO tell me it shouldn't be locked or even give me a hard time about it.

I one instance when Ms. Tacostuff was traveling with me, I opted out, and the TSO asked her if she could open it while I was waiting for my pat-down. She told the TSO "she wasn't authorized to open it" and he had to wait 10 minutes for me to finish my opt-out pat down.

Yes, I know what I have heard, and I expected there was some change to the policy. But apparently an official press secretary has stated that there was no change to the policy, and the old policy still stands, and TSA has never amended their official stance on the website. All of those things need to be researched and corrected, and as I understand it, the OP may be in a position to do something about it. I would at least like clarification now that an explicit contradiction from an official source has arisen.