Weird post-flight TSA screen
 

Just arrived BDL-ATL. Ignoring the horribly rude and lacksidaisical TSA agents at BDL, the departure and flight itself was perfectly uneventful.

After arriving at ATL baggage claim, however, we were greeted by a DL red coat who informed us that there was a problem at BDL and our bags would therefore be delayed. A couple folks started getting concerned that she meant our bags had not been loaded at all, but then the red coat continued to explain that our bags were in ATL, they'd just be 10-15 minutes late coming out because they needed to be rescreened before getting delivered to us, as the bags had somehow not been screened at BDL before getting loaded.

Other than getting a bit damp from the rain, my bag and everyone else's came out just fine, but a few questions are being begged:
- How in the heck did unscreened bags get all the way through and loaded on a plane?
- What good does it do to screen the bags upon arrival, before delivery landside to the passengers? I get that they should rescreen bags going to connecting flights, but these were all bags terminating in the domestic baggage claim in ATL.

I feel like this is something I'd like to somehow run up the chain to TSA/DHS if there's even the slightest chance it'll get to someone who can do something. As ridiculous as security theater can be, it's still rather frightening that a full plane of pax completed a flight with bags in the hold that had apparently not been given even a cursory look over before getting loaded. (And yes, I know that unscreened cargo flies all the time, but it's at least marginally harder for some random person to send cargo vs. just dragging a suitcase into the airport and dropping it at a counter).

You can't really apply "logic" and "TSA" - they are mutually exclusive.

I am curious though if by screening the bags after they have flown, the marketing department of the TSA can legally say "We screen 100% of bags"

http://www.delta.com/bagsontime

;)

If you want to get technical, 100% would really not be very comforting at all, thanks to significant digits.

Would this incident not go to the question about what we know can happen once the bags are delivered?

Take it to the media, tell them you are shocked to have flown with such dangerous baggage!

The amount (or absolute lack) of TSA agent oversight at baggage screening pods could surprise you. There doesn't need to be an officer watching bags get screened. They just go through the scanner, and the scanner will stop when it thinks there's something fishy, or it's time for a random search.

This is how we get reports of passengers who claim to have checked undeclared firearms for years.

How many yearz did we fly with unscreened bags?!?!? :confused:

Dont'ch'a feel much safer now?!?!? :confused:

;)

Yeah, forgot to add that I filed a claim immediately after my bag came out and it was approved/posted within seconds.

Fair enough. The part that really boggled me was the post-flight screening. I literally can see no point in doing that, even if the initial screening were in fact effective ...

as noted upthread ...
:rolleyes: uh, yeah ...

All the TSA has to do is find one undeclared firearm or one illegal item in the bags and the $$$ from that fine would put TSA ahead.

It's also theoretically possible that someone transferred an item from a local bag to a connection bag, so the entire airplane bin is "tainted." And if Delta took an unclaimed local bag with a prohibited item and put it back in sortation, then the passenger could be off the hook.

Reminds me of this incident...

If the bags went from point A to B safely, why do they need to be re-screened?

Reminds me of the first time I flew AS and the TSA failed to notice that one of the metal detectors was not plugged in at SJC. When we got to SEA, they made sure we were all marched outside of the secure area and those with connections had to re-clear security at SEA. This was before the porno scanners.

Ugh!

Uh? This makes.no sense. The bag would get rescreened at ATL when checked back in. Otherwise if talking about a bad DL employee this could happened even if the bag had been screened.

I mean if Delta puts the bag back in sortation and TSA finds something then, the passenger could claim he wasn't the one who put it in there.

Here's could claim that anyway. It's been in DL possession the whole time. Really and truly the only thing that can't be done right now is prove that the passenger put the item there. However regardless of if they scan it now they still can't. The bag has gone through too many steps and been away too long. Basically there's nothing that could happen to a passenger now regardless of if it's scanned and something is found. Also scanning bags for those terminating does nothing and could be argued as a 4th amendment violation as it serves no security purpose at this point. Those continuing on should of course have bags scanned, but even if something comes up, at this point it can't be proved beyond doubt the passenger placed it on the bag.

Good point. The last argument I can think of is the arrival state could complain/sue the TSA for failing to provide proper transportation security for the flight arriving into the state. TSA screening bags before giving to pax on arrival helps cover themselves from that complaint.

"Those Washington hippies are bringing the devil's lettuce into our great state of Texas. The TSA would've found it if they had done their jerbs."

I am moving this threads over to the Practical Travel Safety and Security Issues forum which is the appropriate home for it.

RSSrsvp - Moderator

Since this discussion is not about something that passengers need to know if they were traveling today, this topic is a better fit for the Checkpoints and Borders Policy Debate forum.

Cheers,

TWA884
Travel Safety/Security co-moderator

Would you consider that what the Red Coat told you was not actually the truth? I would more likely suspect an covert illegal law enforcement type search by TSA for something that was not identified correctly at the point of origin.

You need to keep in mind that there may have been information brought to TSA's attention about potential issues with a passenger that required a law enforcement screening of the bags. Don't always believe the reason that is given when it comes to issues like the one described.

Yep -- I was thinking the same thing. If I had to speculate, the were looking for drugs.

Given that the scanning is done in the lobby at BDL and customers have to bring their checked bags directly to the screening machines where the TSA agents scan them (because BDL=not helpful), there is zero possibility that those bags weren't initially screened. Something had to have occurred or there was some sort of tip that something (like drugs) may have been introduced after the screening or that TSA was concerned they missed.

TSA looking for drugs would not constitute a legal Administrative Search. For law enforcement to conduct that search would require a Search Warrant.

All they would have to do is claim they "saw something" on the scanner and were required to check it out visually. When they open the bag looking for the "something", they just "accidentally" come across the drugs in the course of an "administrative inspection."

Thank you mods for relocating as appropriate!

This is a good point, which I had not considered. I do think that the red coat was just telling us what she herself had been told - she seemed as confused as all the passengers and genuinely apologetic for the delay, willing to help, etc. I actually wanted to give her a DL JWD certificate but didn't see her again after collecting my bag.

Yeah, the BDL screening has always seemed ridiculous to me, especially because there is a perfectly functional belt behind the check in counters. But...this was also part of the BDL TSA incompetence I referenced in my OP. After getting my bag tagged by DL, I went to the TSA drop area where all four TSA agents were just standing around talking. I offered them my bag, and they told me to just leave it on the mat in front of the scanner (said mat being basically in the middle of the walkway in front of the ticket counters). I plopped it there next to another bag and started to walk away, then realized the TSA guys had no intent of actually doing anything with it. So I just kind of hung out across the way for a good 2-3 minutes watching my bag and others sit ignored and unattended.

Eventually one of the TSA guys started collecting the bags and dragging them into the screening area, but at that point I was done watching them so I never saw if they actually sent the bags through the machine. I wouldn't put it past them to have just slung the bags straight down to sortation because they couldn't be bothered to start up the scanner.

At point of origin that argument might pass but at destination not so much.

Walking the politically-correct straight & narrow, all I will say is that perhaps this might be a "corporate work ethic" example?

I have no idea what this is supposed to be implying, but if you're trying to make a potential OMNI-destined reference, I'm not certain it would correctly apply to the group of agents I was describing.

<deleted> The adjective for TSA baggage screeners that I was talking around was "lazy."

Ahh...I will say that my perception of the TSA staff in this instance led me to believe that they were not eager to do their jobs in a timely manner. :)

Now back to the theories of who was smuggling what on my flight. :D