Are we really secure?
 

Just an interesting fact here. My family flew from ALB to SEA for the holidays. Mom left on 12/21 and then my sister and brother-n-law on 12/23.

On 12/26 we boarded the Victoria Clipper from SEA to Victoria and had to pass through an ID check where behold...my brother-n-law had an EXPIRED drivers license and they questioned him and whether he should be entering Canada with this. After finding out he was traveling with family and we all had ID's they let him through.

Then he said this is the SAME ID he used to board the flights with CO on 12/23 coming to SEA from ALB. Hmmmm??? Is that not a security breach? Doesn't the ID have to be a valid government issue? How secure are we? and is it really working?

The story concludes that Dad who was still in ALB overnight mailed their valid passports to make sure they would not have any problems returning out of SEA for ALB.

Um...belive it or not..here in the good 'ole USA I actually had a problem depositing (not even cashing) a check way back in 1998 because my driver's license had expired. Bank of America in Dallas, TX. (Greenvile and Walnut Hill Location.)

The corporate BS is now abudant and apparently endless.....don't know what to tell you.

Buzz?

1 - Just because the DATE has passed does not mean it is no longer YOU. This should not stop one from flying.

2 - Fake IDs are easy to get, so the ID thing is a joke anyways.

3 - A bad guy would NOT be stupid enought to fly with an expired ID that might cause attention.

4 - None of this matters anyway as it has nothing to do with security. Just window dressing. Remember, the folks that brought down planes on Sept 11th all had good IDs, not even fake ones.

This topic belongs in ""Travel"Buzz versus "Miles"Buzz. Please follow it in its new home.

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Craig6z
Buzz & United Moderator
[email protected]

I for one feel much more secure now that all luggage is being x-rayed. This was long overdue...

JP

The government is far more concerned with knowing who is entering and leaving the country (hence your problems on the Victoria Clipper) then on who is travelling from ALB to SEA, especially given that you father, whoever he may be, passed through security before boarding the aircraft.
On a side note, proof of citizenship is technically required when travelling between the USA and Canada. A driver's license is not a proof of citizenship, although it is typically accepted as such for people travelling between these two countries.
Consider what would have occurred had he been travelling on an expired passport. The airline may let him fly, if despite the fact the passport is expired, the name and photo are still your father (albeit a slightly younger version). Alternately Immigration/Customs would be more reluctant to let him enter/leave the country given the functions of a US passport when traveling internationally.
However, in my opinion, the airline employee probably did not look at the expiration date. Plain and simple.

So, are you saying it has been unsafe for the past how many years when they did not xray the baggage?

It certainly was a very big security hole that could have easily been exploited.

Pan Am 103 was brought down by an explosive in a portable radio that was in with the checked luggage.