I've gone through many a checkpoint at sane locations where I was the only one in line. I was not harassed. That is what should be SOP everywhere.


Replace w/TSA or get someone you trust. You're wasting time and money.

Hire me and I'll be happy to set your staffing levels. I already give the TSA plenty of free advice.

I will now climb onto my soapbox. Here we go again with the "gate rape" nonsense and personal attacks on people you don't even know (e.g. "both of whom looked as if they didn't miss many meals"). As if that has anything to do with who they are or what they are doing. You want us to understand your point of view or accept your words as credible, yet you post this type of fodder.

Now for the great staffing debate. CG says: "They only cry "understaffing" because they, like ALL government operations, cannot perform even the [simplest (corrected for spelling)] of tasks w/o 3 employees" yet the private counterparts at the other five test airports staff their model exactly the same way as TSA staffs their lanes, so that ascertain does not hold water. Screening is what screening is. Walk through metal detector, x-ray operator, hand wanding screener, bag check screener. Four components, four employees. Five if you want someone moving all your precious belongings along so the line keeps moving. But hey, it's not me standing in line, so if you want a lane with three or fewer employees in it, by all means jump up and down, write your representatives and demand fewer employees. I'd love to see the wait times when that goes down! TSA.....don't think it's going anywhere anytime soon. Sure, some airports will opt for private screeners. Those airports will charge you, the end user for that service. And guess what....as taxpaying citizens of this great nation, you will still be paying for TSA services. Wow! The best of both worlds. You get your precious private screeners operating under the EXACT same rules. You get to pay extra in your ticket prices for those highly advantaged private screeners (see GAO report: private screeners no better than Federal), and you still continue to pay taxes for the TSA budget. Now getting off my soapbox.

Okay, if people are really erasing TSAMGR's posts, stop it. It's pretty brave of TSAMGR to even enter this forum and it's better to hear from both sides of a conflict.

Okay, so here's my beef with gate screening: how does it address the problem of understaffing? If you subtract people from the main checkpoint and send them off to do gate checks, won't you be in a worse place than where you started? As I understand what you've said, TSA can just arbitrarily NOT check people who got SSSS' es and do gate checks to compensate.

The above is absurd. Clearly, the SSSS'ed people are the ones you need to check. How does ignoring them, and then going after completely random other people in a different area of the airport possibly balance out? Either SSSS really identifies a more risky group of travelers or it doesn't.

The glaring inconsistencies in TSA's procedures and policies have made it the laughingstock of frequent travelers *and* put it on the receiving end of three negative reports from independent agencies in a single week.

Could this be due to the fact that the goverment dictates staffing levels?

Why does the "Traffic Cop" position need to be a screener? What is so difficult about that position that it neds to be an overpaid government hack?

Same goes for the ever so important Five if you want someone moving all your precious belongings along so the line keeps moving hack.

The TSA is a JOKE. As the economy improves and ore people start flying again, more people will come to see the TSA for what it is:

HACKS

How it's addressing the problem is that SSSS screening at the checkpoint stops. The lines will at that point run more freely because BP's and such don't need to be checked and SSSS don't hold up Hand wanders and such having to be screened then and there.

Depending on your airport, you send one maybe two teams of screeners out to do random gates and have them meet a set % that TSA has set up. So in the long run it helps, but you don't screen what TSA feels are the threat I guess 100% of the time.

TSA doesn't even dictate it's own staffing really. Like TSAMGR said, if they would set it up that more screeners were on the checkpoint at the pike times it would make things much easier for everyone.


Sorry, but it's not a position any longer. It was cut a long time ago, but many airports still use it because a lot of passenger just can't seem to put their items on in a correct matter. (Examples: Laptop out of case in bin but place bag directly on top of it / Bag is to large standing up to go through xray but laying down it's fine but the passenger insist on standing it up / People can't remember what to take out of their pockets / Some passengers need help because of babies and such/ Laptop in bin with shoes on top of it / Reminding passengers to leave their BP's out because they seem to ignore what the WTMD screener is asking them to do countless times)

Not every line is always caused by TSA, sometimes it's the passengers in line that just won't listen to you and what you ask them to do. And you can sit there and give them instructions on what to do and they just don't understand or they ignore you.

An alternative solution would be to abolish the absolutely idiotic policies mentioned above -- perhaps that would make more sense to the traveling public then?

Four to five screeners per lane was in place before TSA came into the picture, so now what? Those positions must be rotated every so often, so placing "something else" in the "traffic cop" position will not work. What do you mean by "when the economy improves and more people start flying again"? Most major airports have exceeded pre-911 loads. Your hatred for gov't screening is obvious from all your "hack" remarks both here and in the past. Separate your hatred from facts. The staffing has not changed since the days of old.

The TSA employs twice as many employees as the private comapnies did. Each lane has at least one, most times two more screeners than pre-9/11.

As for loads, that is a misleading statistic. Loads may be up, but there are far fewer available seats.

80% of 100 = 80
75% of 200 = 150

There are still far fewer people flying today than in 2000.

The current equipment we're using needs these rules. I'm honestly sorry I can't go into greater detail but if you used the equipment you'd honestly understand.

What we have here is the TSA admitting that it doesn't need to extra-screen SSSS people to ensure security. Then why do we have the SSSS system at all? It's completely unjustifiable harassment of the paying, flying public.


What we need to do is shout from the rooftops and get some major press coverage of the fact that if people see gate screening, that means the TSA has just let SSSS people waltz on by in the regular line at the checkpoint. Then the ignorant fly-once-a-decade fear-o-philes will refuse to fly whenever they see gate screeners.

We can pit the nervous ninnies against the TSA!

The SSSS system in place now has many problems and it's part of the reason for deveolpment of the CAPPS2 program. TSA also knows this.

Every person is screened and TSA knows this, the SSSS system is just a more focused screening.

This is for smaller airports:
The integrated (selectee) lane needs to have a certain amount of screeners for it to run. If we don't have the right amount we can run a standard lane and have two screeners as a gate team. The total number is still below what would be needed for the integrated lane. The gate team is suppose to screen the selectees for the flight, plus some random. Since the gate teams can't be at all gates, a percentage of flights has to be done.

Since 100% selectee screening is not being done this is a last resort measure and TSA HQ has to be notified.

What I advise in my postings is what is suppose to happen. Does it happen at all airports? No. This is a problem many TSA employees are frustrated about also. We do what we can but have to answer to a higher authority.




The Hebrew National Guy!!!

That is one quote from TSAMGR that I can agree with, I used to have the opinion that the TSA would be an effective and honest improvement over the past system. During the past 2 years of flying and the recent arrest of TSA employees for theft have proven to me that my prior opinion was wrong.
^ ^

TSAMGR, how often are the TSA employees randomly drug screened? I suspect that the recently arrested TSA emp's probably had a drug problem. With the improving job market TSA jobs will begin to only appeal to bottom of barrel type of people, thefts and incompetence will only increase. I would feel a lot better if you guys were drug tested at least monthly. @:-)

No, you have people who work for the TSA expressing their own opinions.

TSA employees, not just screeners are randomly drug tested. How often depends on randomness so I don't have an exact often.

We have had two tests since the beginning of the year.