The rigors of a "Screening Test."
 

As I went through the checkpoint yesterday at one of my favorite airports, a woman bypassed a long line of passengers waiting to send their bags through the xray. Instead, she walked behind the set of tables leading to the xray, placed a handbag in front of all the other bags, then walked all the way around and entered the metal detector after flashing her badge. The screener behind the xray monitor barked out the requisite code for a weapon. A supervisor came over, patted the screener on the back, then warmly greeted the so called screen test person (apparently they were old friends). After completingsome paperwork, everyone went on their merry way.

1) Is this REALLY the screening test TSA performs to ascertain the quality of screening?
2) What logic does it make for the screen test person to be so obvious?

Does that gun count on the weekly report?:rolleyes:

You should ask that at PV and see what kind of response you get. I think I know how it'll go though. :rolleyes:

LEO?

What makes you think this was someone testing the screener?

It was probably just a local test, which has nothing to do with the Red Team.

Agreed. Though I've never heard of them using a gun in a local test bag, before. Of course, it's not conclusive that there was a gun, either.

Because after all the hello, how are yous, the woman turned around and walked back out to the exit area.

We have guns up here in Boston, former handguns which have been rendered inert by sealing everything up... barrel, chamber, slide.

Everything from semi-autos to derringers, I've seen.

However, the test form has a check block if the STSO observed that the TSO was aware of the test.

Amazing, absolutely amazing....

If they are aware of the test, it isn't a test. At best it is training.

Is there a check block if the STSO decides not to check the check block that the TSO was aware of the test, even though the TSO was aware, to make it appear that the TSO passed the "test"?

Or it could be a test with the outcome predetermined.

What better way to improve screening scores?

For the most part that's what these are for... training purposes. Now if it's local ATI/STAN team (at least' that's we call the standardization trainers) their tests are going to be a bit more hard and if you fail to catch it... you're yanked off the x-ray and sent to be re-trained.

No.

Does anyone know if the TSA will send employees through the new "strip search" machines with weapons "artfully concealed" on their bodies for training purposes or testing?

*****

If the exercise is to train the screener in weapons detection, making it obvious with the actions the OP stated makes the exercise a lot less meaningful. The way that it was handled, the screener would have had to have been completely dense to miss the fact that something MIGHT be out of the ordinary.

If the purpose was to test screener for training purposes (not for statistical or Red Team type tests), it was an epic fail. Can't emulate the real world with something that obvious.

My sources tell me it doesn't change anything, that these scores aren't sent to DC.