To whom are you referring ?

It tells me that I was wrong in thinking TSA should change its name to ATSA (Air Transportation Security Agency). It now looks as if it should be changed to PSA (Passenger Security Agency). Apparently TSA doen't care that much about the whole transportation picture (or air transportation for that matter).

Thank you, Bart. I appreciate your honesty on this point. It's plainly nonsensical to super-screen some people at the checkpoint. All procedures should be applicable to all passengers. A terrorist can easily circumvent whatever it is that gets you selected for super-screening. Wanding my body and allowing people to touch me on sensitive parts of my body puts me at risk every time I go through a checkpoint, and for what? Touching people's private parts at the airport has nothing to do with security.

Why me??
 

I have read and understand some of the reasons for the SSSS. I am trying to understand, however, why I was chosen on both legs of my trip to Hawaii last year.

I was flying on a first class award ticket obtained with miles from one carrier, but flown on another major carrier. The miles were from my FF account, and there were 2 of us traveling together, with the same last name. On both the outbound and the return, I was selected for a more intense screening.

If there was no FF number, if it had been a one way ticket, if it had been paid with cash, if it had been made close or changed recently, etc, I could understand (though not agree).

In this case it was with miles (lots) that I had earned, the ticket had been issued 5-6 months in advance and never changed.

If I had been selected once, or if the person traveling with me (as it was not their FF miles) was selected once, maybe I wouldn't have thought anything of it, but that wasn't the case.

Was I just lucky? :D

TSA deals with passenger screening and luggage screening directly. Indirectly TSA sets procedures in place for Airport Authories and such to follow. TSA with it's limited staff can only do so much and needs the help of all agencies to be able to ever succeed.

I honestly will say that the airport authority at my airport has been tested by TSA reps on many occasions, the "TSA doesn't care that much about the whole transportation picture" is not true. We're limited to what we can do as a agency and getting more so with each screener, lead, and supervisor leaving. We also have programs in place to train FFDO's and getting programs in place to train FA's sometime in the future. TSA also is finally testing new techonogly to improve security.

TSA has it's hands wrapped up in a lot of things already and does need help with providing the whole picture of security.