TSA and Herding Cats
#32
Join Date: Jul 2006
Location: NYC
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And is that carrier inspected if your cat (or dog) flies in the belly of the aircraft? No it is not - so why even bother to take the animal out of the crate. If it's not going to inspected going into the cargo hold there should be no requirement to x-ray it when going into the cabin.
#34
Original Poster
Join Date: Sep 2006
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I've never heard a single cat "yowl" while on board an aircraft. Too bad I can't say the same for screaming babies.
#35
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: DCA / WAS
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Neither is pleasant....
#36
Moderator, Hilton Honors
Join Date: Nov 2003
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#37
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Join Date: Nov 2004
Posts: 1,441
Not true - there are lots of things (i.e. guns) that could be hidden in a carrier that wouldn't present a risk when in the cargo hold, but could when in the cabin of the aircraft. If you believe that WTMD and X-ray are appropriate screening tools for carry-on baggage, they should apply to all carry-on baggage.
#38
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: YYC
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Posts: 3,008
At one of my classes, I asked how many TSOs had ever x-rayed an animal. Several hands were raised, and the majority of them were the more seasoned screeners. The ones who didn't raise their hands, a great majority of them having less than a year of screening experience, looked at me in horror when I asked the question. I smiled and told them, "we don't want it to happen; we don't let it happen, but it happens. You haven't really earned your stripes as a screener until it happens to you."
Does seeing an animal on the xray become a "just part of the job event" (like IT people finding porn on coworkers laptops)?
#39
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Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 8,389
Apparently you do not own a cat. A cat can be "controlled" while in a carrier, but once the door is open, anything goes.
I still do not understand the need to put the carrier through the X-ray, with or without an occupant. Most carriers are fairly thin and can easily be inspected by hand - at least in the same amount of time it takes to remove and replace an animal. This seems to be a policy for the sake of uniformity.
I still do not understand the need to put the carrier through the X-ray, with or without an occupant. Most carriers are fairly thin and can easily be inspected by hand - at least in the same amount of time it takes to remove and replace an animal. This seems to be a policy for the sake of uniformity.
If you're going to travel with a pet, understand the rules.
#40
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Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 8,389
I don't know enough about how backscatter x-rays work to comment.
#42
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Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 8,389
At some random airport, and memory suggests it was YVR or ORD, I saw a sign on the x-ray machine that said that babies were to be removed from carriers before putting the carriers through.
Clearly that had been put there for a reason which begged the question: Who had been putting their babies through the X-ray machine?
Clearly that had been put there for a reason which begged the question: Who had been putting their babies through the X-ray machine?
#43
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Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 8,389
Actually, there's no movement. The x-ray takes a snapshot, and you can definitely see the outline of the animal as well as its skeleton. In fact, it sort of looks like a stuffed animal; however, the colors are more intense as opposed to the flat color of a stuffed animal.
#44
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2000
Posts: 15,788
Fighting rules like this is the duty of every citizen. If I ever have to subject my cats to the ministrations of the TSA, you can be sure the screener will be invited to carry said cat through the arch.
This sure sounds like what you want to do to/with Victoria is against the TOS, if not state and federal laws.
This sure sounds like what you want to do to/with Victoria is against the TOS, if not state and federal laws.
#45
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Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 8,389
No dice. I'm a pet owner, and I clearly understand my responsibilities and accept them without any hesitation. Seems that some in here do not.