Actually i Have the definite answer. I was in Training Class and asked this question, and they have to come out of the box. They consider the box a bag and it must be removed.

TSOs have to enter the secure area through the WTMD? If so, are all of the guys that bring bags back to the x-ray loading area for a re-scan violating the rules?

What airport are you at?

And most of us are more practical at the checkpoint, considering that the box doesn't hinder any visibility on the x-ray, that sounds completely asinine. Then again, it is the training department.

A couple months ago I put my jacket on top of my carry on bag. A screener put the jacket into the bin where I had placed my shoes, but then the idiot put the shoes on top of the jacket. I brusquely told him I did not want shoes on top of my jacket, thinking along the same lines as LessO2. Imbecile screener then told me to calm down, asked me if I wanted to fly. We taxpayers are forking over $5.5 billion per year for a bunch of morons who cannot uniformly interpret ridiculous rules.

There's a lot going on in this thread, I will try to address as many parts of it as I can.

TSA policy is that large electronics need to come out of the bag. Game Consoles are generally considered to be large enough to be removed. Phones generally aren't large enough.

The TSO arguing with the X-Ray operator made several mistakes besides his confusion about whether Wii game consoles had to be removed. Most importantly the X-Ray operator is the authority and his/her decisions shouldn't be disputed. Image interpretation is difficult, and items need to be loaded into the X-Ray in the way that is most conducive to the operator detecting threats. And TSOs shouldn't argue about SOP in front at the checkpoint, it is unprofessional/


TSA has done a poor job of maintaining a consistent position about how items need to be loaded into the X-Ray. There is no national position about which items need to be loaded in bins or not. We get a lot of security guidance, however this is an area that directly impacts the customer's experience. At some airports, shoes aren't allowed to be run in bins in one lane and they are required to be run in a bin on the other. And at a third lane, no one cares. Since there is no guidance on this issue, individual TSOs make up rules as they go and it contributes to passenger confusion/anger.

Personally I agree that shoes belong on the belt and not in bins. I also don't think that many of the items that passengers try to run in bins (backpacks, etc) belong in bins.

Finally,

Matb2005 writes he received a definitive answer from training. This is a personal pet peeve of mine. Training can't give a definitive answer because they are not in charge of SOP adherence. They like to think they are. But SOP interpretation is an area in which Operations has authority and not the Training department. This question should have been directed to a manager who (if there was a dispute) have asked the AFSD-S. This sounds as if you asked someone and they gave you their opinion. Although I believe they gave you the right answer, just because the question came from Training doesn't make it any more right than if it had come from someone else. A definitive answer comes through the chain of command not from outside Operations.


Angry Dan

There's a lot of airport screening that reminds me of many Monty Python skits , but this thread seems to particularly remind me of the Holy Grail (funniest movie ever) where all the guards are arguing over the air speed velocity of swallows that might then transport coconuts.
http://www.geocities.com/knightsaysni/mp/grail.txt; scene #1.

You can always tell who the newbies are...they adhere strictly to the rules until they have enough experience to allow their own judgement. I will say that Matb is correct, that is what they tell you to do in training. They also tell you that kippie bags must be out...nothing in the bin with a laptop...etc. Iworkhere is correct too. A box does not hinder an xray image of an item. If every screener followed the policies exactly, there would be less inconsistency, but it would be more of a pain.

Also, AngryDan is correct. The xray operator has the say on what gets checked, and arguing at the CP is totally unprofessional.

Actually, she wasnt sure so she went and asked our afsd-s and he was the one who told us that they need to be removed.

Could someone be so kind as to translate "AFSD-S" . . . ?

Asst. Federal Security Director....I don't know what the "-S" means...