Computer glitch chokes US Airways
 

St. Petersberg Times Article

"Hundreds of US Airways travelers trying to leave Tampa International Airport on Monday got an early taste of the holidays: long lines, short tempers and plans gone awry.

An airline mainframe computer at the airport was down most of the day, forcing US Airways to check in customers using pens and paper. That slowed lines to a crawl at ticket counters. But the biggest delays came as travelers waited to clear security checkpoints.

Because ticket agents couldn't run passenger names through the computerized "no-fly" list of possible terrorists, most travelers were subjected to secondary screening - either inspection with a metal-detecting wand or a body pat-down."

One more reason the disgusting, un-American "no fly" list(s) need to be eliminated. I hope there were a lot of complaints generated by those who where subjected to this harassment.

For discussion about US Airways & this latest computer glitch, please see this thread in the US Airways forum: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=371952

I'll keep this thread open in case FTers want to discuss the TS&S-related consequences of this type of IT breakdown. If you'd like to comment re: US Airways - please use the above thread.

-Chris
TS&S Moderator

So a bunch of US employees worked their butts off and made the best of the situation by using a backup system (pen/paper) ^ and then the TSA totally drops the ball by deciding to SSSS everyone with the manual BP. :td:

Why couldn't they just randomly SSSS the same fraction of travelers that normally get randomly SSSS'd?

Whoever was in charge (does the FSD make this sort of call?) really screwed up here. This policy smacks of typical TSA policy of risk avoidance instead of risk management. Hopefully every one of those pax whose flight was delayed due to TSA and missed a connection/meeting due to TSA fills out a complaint form and complains to their congressman.

Side note: I wonder how much $ someone could have made with a laptop, cellular/wireless internet connection, and portable printer, if they set up shop and charged people $2 to do web checkin (which was apparently still working). :)

wait a second
 

TSA at that airport didnt decide anything. It is policy that if you get a hand written ticket without the benefit of computer accuracy checking, you get ssss. Getting rid of the no fly list wont help. The FSD didnt have anything to do with it either. This happens at DEN sometimes and I can tell you that TSA screeners hate it as much as the passengers. It is not any bonus to us when we have to secondary screen all the passengers.

Extra security is not done for hand cards at Logan with Cape Air.

Cape Air issues handwritten boarding cards to all customers with travel booklets (ten full-fare coupon packs, good for anyone at any time) and no checked luggage (basically, its regular customers, about 50% of 9K's traffic probably).

They do not receive any additional screening at the security point at terminal C. Is that a local exception to policy?

OK, well thanks for the info. I hadn't run into this so I didn't know.

I redirect the venom in my above post away from the local FSD and up to the higher-ups. Nationwide TSA policy should give the local FSD discretion to not SSSS all passengers during a computer breakdown like that. If TSA insists on SSSS as being a valid security measure (which they apparently do), then in this situation they should randomly SSSS x% of the passengers where x% is equal to the percentage of pax normally SSSS'd at that checkpoint.

What's the point of a "no-fly" list if you still let them fly!! Shouldn't it be more like a 'mandatory secondary screening' list, or a 'we really don't want you to fly, but we'll let you anyway' list.

Jeff

What a mess
 

This is my homebase and I can tell you that the whole Airside F TSA staff worked madly to get those folks through that check point ^ Could this "computer problem" be a part of a plot to finally bring down this company? I know many of the US Air folks are retiring and some have asked about working for the TSA :(