ID checks at the gate
 

Last week at LGA I was boarding a flight and saw a TSA employee come down to gate A1. Oh, great, a gate frisking show... but no... just an ID "check".

When I get to the guy I show my passport card, with my thumb covering my name (and far enough away that he could not see much detail in the photo). Of course he did not ask for, or get to see, my boarding pass

Don't the TSA (A being for actors) even try to pretend anymore?

In a previous thread I suggested that TSA employees should join the SAG. I realize that was in error; this would have been a more appropriate suggestion.

I had a similar experience at IAH a few weeks back. I was also VERY late to the airport and to the gate and was not happy with the guy and probably let it show. He actually followed me down the jetway to yell at me about how he was just doing his job, blah, blah, blah. Pretty ridiculous.

Same at STL a few weeks back... Was asked twice for id an bp within a 5 minute span at the gate..... It is all theater...

Maybe you should ask for their ID to make sure they aren't a terrorist..:cool:

I've had my flight delayed out of Newark because of this. We missed our departure slot. I'd really like the TSA to say, "We have a solid, well-thought-out reason for doing this." It's a very third world, cumbersome, and pointless exercise. I have no idea why they still get away with it.

TSA should not be looking at any ones id. Period end of story.

February 17, 10:01 a.m., DL2059, ATL-TPA, Gate A17 in Atlanta: I was first in line (with a first-class seat), waiting to board when at least six TSA smurfs arrived, including at least three two-stripers, carting some sort of machine. The two-striper who seemed to be in charge spoke to the gate agent, who announced, "These nice TSA officers are going to be checking all IDs, so get them out for inspection. After they check your IDs, you can give me your boarding pass to board the plane. They will also be randomly checking bags. Anyone who does not cooperate will not be allowed to board." That's pretty close to verbatim. The lead smurf nodded approvingly. Really. I also noticed a sign repeating the essence of the agent's last sentence.

It appeared that every passenger's ID was checked (or glanced at, anyway). I have no idea what that was supposed to accomplish. Obviously, it accomplished nothing meaningful.

Bruce

A taxpayer funded cheque and display of ego, as well as power.

In some countries railoads have a position that flags a train to continue on or to stop. One such employee got married and told his wife that he held a job that gave him so much power that he could stop even the most important train by waving a red flag. The wise was really impressed and considered herself lucky to be married to such a powerful man and exclaimed, "Really! I have got to see that!" The guy put on his uniform, not much unlike the TSA smurfs, and stood by the tracks, with the red flag in his hand, when the fastest train in the system was to whiz by. As the time for the train approached, he started waving the flag. To the wife's amazement, the train came to a screeching halt. The engine operator stepped down to ask the flagman "what is going on? The flagman asked him "Where are we going today?"The engine operator asked him again"What's going on?". "Nothing at all!", the flag man responded, "I just wanted to show my wife how important my job is and how much power my job gives me." :D

That's what TSA smurfs are accomplishing. Demonstration of power. :mad:

I made it all the way from an EWR ticket counter to the plane without a boarding pass that matched my ID last week.

The kiosk could not print my boarding pass and a message referred me to the ticket counter. After dealing with the rude ticket counter agent I proceeded to the gates without noticing she gave me someone else's boarding pass (of a different gender). After going through security I not only proceeded onto the plane with the wrong boarding pass but realized I had forgotten to remove my baggie of "liquids" from my suitcase - not only that did that go unnoticed but I may have gone unnoticed except that the person who's boarding pass I was holding had boarded the plane before me. The gate agent was clearly annoyed with the ticket counter agent's mistake and asked me how I got through security - I'm wondering the same thing!

I can't believe you made it past security with a boarding pass that didn't match your name! Somebody must have had too much TSA Kool-Aid that day:p

Great job TSA!!!:rolleyes:

In the second half of September 2001 I flew unknowingly with two medium size pocket knives in my purse.

IAD, SFO or SJC ( can't remember) SEA and DCA

They were discovered on flight #4 leaving SEA. :eek:
PBQ

And somehow no hijacking occurred. ;)

Knives are not a threat to aircraft and should be ignored.

I don't know that I would go that far. The Sept. 11 hijackings were done with box cutters. Yes, the doors are re-enforced now I understand that but how about the individual pilots psychological resolve? How are the pilots going to react if the bad guys start killing the flight attendants one by one then move on to the passengers if they don't open the door? Yes, I am sure they intellectually know that if they open the door likely they are all dead but I am sure it is a different story if you had to sit there and listen to the screams.

Is it a likely scenario? No, I don't think so but it doesn’t matter what I think or what you think. It only matters what the collective public thinks. It all boils down to what the public is willing to endure. Right now the vast majority of the population is willing to endure a lot to feel safe. Notice I said feel safe not necessarily be safe. The posters on this board have to realize that they are not the vast majority of the traveling public. The vast majority of the traveling public, the ones you refer to as the "ma and pa kettle" travelers, which those of you who scream racist and bigotry at every turn I wonder how those travelers would feel about being referred to in what appears as a belittling term because they don't travel a lot, would feel about that. Seems pretty elitist to me but that is a different topic.

Anyway, I hear a lot about the Constitution and the Bill of Rights on this board. The US is a representative form of government. Our representatives seem to think that this is what we want. The only way I see it changing is if we convince our representatives that the majority want it to change. I don't see that happening because the majority of the country that these people represent doesn’t care. They don't care because they fly maybe once a year at best and just doesn’t affect them.

FB

I agree. First thing I think about when I hear "knives" is 9/11. Lots of stuff is theater and ineffective. Doesn't mean we should allow knives and weapons and explosives on board. I'd really rather not make it easy for any bad guys to create a hostage situation.

Sorry, that's a ridiculous scenario. The same situation can occur with broken glass, etc.

Cooperation with hijackers is what caused 9/11. Not box cutters.

Banning knives and box cutters was a stupid, knee-jerk, feel-good (to some) solution that did not address the problem, just like blaming Argenbright for not stopping the hijackers at the security checkpoint.

You are assuming the FAs and PAX would not fight back.

Impossible. The pilots would paste any hijackers to the ceiling and land so quickly your head would spin -- literally.

Bruce

Don't complain - shortly after 9/11, i took a red-eye from LAX to JFK. I had to show ID before security, at the other end of the WTMD, at the entrance to the jet bridge, and at the aircraft door. I finally had to ask the FA if someone thought I had transmogrified as I walked through the jetway...

I think if you show up at anyone's place of work and get snotty with them, you should expect them to get snotty back. Sounds like you two deserved each other that day! :D

There are surely more "once a year" flyers than "frequent flyers" such as the people here. If politicians are looking for votes, they have to pander to the "once a year" flyers (and the non-flyers, who are also a large part of the population).

But the airlines, airports and associated businesses need to heed the frequent flyers - while few in number, FFs represent the majority of revenue for the airlines. When the once-a-week and once-a-month flyers stop travelling, the airlines are going to fail. And politicians need to be aware of that, too.

Any front line employee that deals with the flying public that way in the private sector would not have a job very long.

I didn't get snotty. I held up my DL and allowed him to look at it. He then insisted that I take it out - again - so that he could give it an in-depth inspection. He had no means to do this in-depth inspection of course. No loupe. No blacklight. He just wanted to stare at it more. I was still trying to get my shoes back on and get my laptop into my bag. I literally ran from the checkpoint to the door so as to avoid missing the flight. I was sufficiently distracted and otherwise occupied that he did not receive my full attention nor did he deserve it.

When he chose to follow me onto the jetway afterward to berate me he crossed the line. That's what I have a problem with.

And that's when it's Joe Pesci time.

I think that's one of the things people don't quite grasp. Airline pilots do their best to make flights smoooooooooth....

If necessary, they could make those planes rock and roll. Bad Guys roaming around the cabin would get tossed around pretty good.

Knives were a secondary factor in 9/11, maybe even a tertiary factor. The real (genious) terrorism behind 9/11 was exploiting airline policy of unconditional cooperation with hijackers. Knives made it easy for them to quickly get compliance from crews and passengers, but they could have achieved the same effect with broken glass, strangling people with shoelaces or neckties, or just claiming to have a bomb.

I'm willing to accept a ban on boxcutters as long as we recognize it is a feel good measure in reaction to 9/11 and has no real security benefit. And large knives (say, blade of 4" or greater) have no more business on an aircraft than swords, guns, explosives, or incendiaries. But banning little 1.5" pen knives is silly, particularly since they easily make it through the metal detector without alarm.

You know that there are metal knives and forks onboard the plane for C and F dinner service, right?

Does anyone else still burst out laughing every time they pull out that little magnifying glass and examine your ID like it's a rare stamp?

Mike

They ought to do the same for the boarding pass, as the "thorough" ID check is worthless without an equally thorough check of the boarding pass. Oh... wait... BPs are not "secure" by any definition of the word. If the TSA really gave a rat's rear end about matching IDs to boarding passes, they would not let airlines issue home-printed (OLCI) boarding passes without verifiable one-time-use bar codes.

This is just another example of how TSA management is either concerned with theater/production values, or is far less qualified than I. Note that I do not claim that I could competently run the TSA.

I've been tempted to use fluorescent ink to mark my ID with some amusing/odd message (or to "spill" a few drops), but the little good judgement that I have has always gotten in the way of my plans.

That's a very good point. I agree with what you have to say because, since I travel as part of my job, quite often the airport is my place of work. Therefore; when TSA employees show up there and get snotty with me they should expect me to get snotty back.

I quite agree.

Fortunately, one seldom sees TSA employees in the airline clubs. Not seeing or having to interact with TSA employees in a section of the airport makes the price of admission well worth it.

When I go through security I am on the clock and a customer is getting billed. I view TSA and their games as interfering with interstate commerce.

PLEASE do NOT give these idiots any ideas!

I don't know what a "one-time-use bar code" would be. A bar code is just a particular encoding of some data. In order to ensure that a particular bunch of data is only "used" once, they'd need to store the fact that it had been used somewhere, and look in that place every time someone tries to "use" a particular bar code.

If they want to be sure that the information in a bar code came from an airline and has not been modified since, they should have the airlines add a digital signature. Bob at the TSA blog mentioned something similar (maybe he spoke of encrypting the data, not signing?) some time ago, but when I asked some very basic questions about the possibility of key expiration and revocation, he never answered.

Right - which is why the poster and his equally snotty TSA friend deserved each other that day!

That works until one exits the club and sees a three-smurf gate grope crew hanging out smack in the middle of the terminal, jaw jacking, leaning on their gate grope trolley, and eating subs, just like I saw at ORD tonight. Professionals, every one... :rolleyes:

I'm really surprised they haven't barged into an airside club somewhere and started checking IDs, groping, and/or swabbing people.

Shh!!!! Don't give the morons any ideas! That would be the day, mandatory nude-o-scope or groping to enter an airline club.. Lets hope the nude-o-scope, and the rest of this security theater disappears, just like the puffer machines!

I highly doubt those idiots would ever implement it. OLCI saves the airlines tons of money in operating costs. Considering how tough it is for the airlines to break even, let alone make a buck, I could see them going into open revolt if that were ever taken away.