TSA PreCheck program to be expanded, details sketchy

The TSA PreCheck program being piloted by The Transportation Security Administration is expanding and will allow some passengers to go through pre-screening then make it through security checkpoints faster at many more airports in 2012. The exact benefits of the program, however, are difficult to define.

“We are pleased to expand this important effort, in collaboration with our airline and airport partners, as we move away from a one-size-fits-all approach to a more intelligence-driven, risk-based transportation security system,” TSA Administrator John S. Pistole told the Los Angeles Times saying the PreCheck program and a similar effort for international travelers, called Global Entry, will help make the TSA screening process more efficient.

Designed to help TSA focus resources on higher-risk and unknown passengers while expediting the process for lower-risk and known passengers whenever possible, more than 336,000 passengers been screened to date through TSA PreCheck lanes.

Some passengers could qualify for expedited screening through U.S. airport security checkpoints via designated screening lanes. The TSA doesn’t say exactly how the screening differs, citing security reasons but potential benefits may include keeping shoes, belts and light jackets on and keeping a 3-1-1 compliant bag in carry-on luggage. The TSA is quick to point out though that “at no point, however, is this program an entitlement. Passengers are always subject to random, unpredictable screening measures,” on their web site.

Not everyone is eligible for the PreCheck program though. It applies only to members of airline frequent-flier programs who also must first apply with the TSA. If approved, they get a boarding pass with a special barcode signaling TSA workers to let them go through the fast lane.


Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/02/09/2995938/airport-will-offer-tsas-precheck.html#storylink=cpy

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/02/09/2995938/airport-will-offer-tsas-precheck.html#storylink=cpy

TSA PreCheck is currently operating with American Airlines at airports in Dallas, Miami, Las Vegas, Minneapolis and Los Angeles, and with Delta Air Lines at airports in Atlanta, Detroit, Las Vegas and Minneapolis. Later this year, US Airways, United Airlines and Alaska Airlines will begin operations.

TSA PreCheck is scheduled to be implemented at the following airports this year:

  • Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI)
  • Boston Logan International Airport (BOS)
  • Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT)
  • Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG)
  • Denver International Airport (DEN)
  • Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport (FLL)
  • George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH)
  • Honolulu International Airport (HNL)
  • Indianapolis International Airport (IND)
  • John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK)
  • LaGuardia Airport (LGA)
  • Lambert-St. Louis International Airport (STL)
  • Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY)
  • Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport (SJU)
  • Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR)
  • O’Hare International Airport (ORD)
  • Orlando International Airport (MCO)
  • Philadelphia International Airport (PHL)
  • Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX)
  • Pittsburgh International Airport (PIT)
  • Portland International Airport (PDX)
  • Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA)
  • Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC)
  • San Francisco International Airport (SFO)
  • Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA)
  • Tampa International Airport (TPA)
  • Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport (ANC) and
  • Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD).




Flickr photo by Inha Leex Hale
Graphic via TSA

New York City area airport rules aren’t doing enough to stop delays

If you’re flying to or through the New York City area, bring a book Kindle. You’ll probably be at the airport for a while. A new U.S. Department of Transportation Office of the Inspector General report says that airports in this part of the country aren’t measuring up, which disrupts air travel nationwide.

According to the Associated Press, the report says that “scheduling rules continue to put too many planes in line during bad weather.” It adds that the “limits imposed by the Federal Aviation Administration at Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark airports in 2008 are too generous and are based on good weather conditions, resulting in a glut of flights when the weather turns ugly.”

The bottom line? Twenty-eight percent of all flights coming into the Newark Liberty International Airport wind up delayed or just canceled, as of August 2010. For LaGuardia and JFK, the rate was around 26 percent. Those aren’t good odds for passengers.

[photo by PetroleumJelliffe via Flickr]

Al Qaeda Yemen connection suspected in cargo plane bomb scares

The simultaneous bomb scares in Newark, Philadelphia and London are now being linked to al Qaeda activity, according to the latest reporting from CNN. On its live blog covering the suspicious item discoveries, CNN reports, “U.S. officials believe that al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula was behind the plot that caused a security scare at English and American airports on Friday.”

In Washington, a diplomat from Yemen has said the government there is opening a full investigation into the alleged bomb, adapted from a toner ink cartridge, that was discovered in the United Kingdom at East Midlands Airport.

Look for tighter security all around at airports in the United States, some of which, according to CNN, will be “visible and passengers should expect a mix of security techniques.”

[photo by redjar via Flickr]

Planes in Philadelphia and Newark being swept for suspicious materials

Suspicious items have been found on cargo flights that landed in Newark, New Jersey and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania today. According to the Transportation Security Administration, the planes have been “moved to a remote location … out of an abundance of caution,” according to CNN.

The fire department’s hazardous materials units in Philadelphia responded to situations with two planes – one a UPS flight, the other a 757 with nobody on it. Officials say that the types of material that could be involved aren’t known.

My Fox New York adds:

Homeland Security officials said one of the crew on the cargo plane from Paris, France, landing at Philadelphia around 9 a.m. called authorities thinking a package aboard the plane could have a radioactive makeup, according to MyFoxPhilly.com.

According to My Fox New York, “There are unconfirmed reports that the Newark plane had arrived from Yemen.” Also, a plane bound from Chicago from Yemen was stopped in London when a bomb made from an ink toner cartridge was found.

In a statement, UPS said it’s cooperating with the investigation.

[photo credit: AP]

$11.5 million buys little security at Newark Liberty Airport

Security gaps are so big at Newark Liberty International Airport you can drive a truck through them. Literally. Inside the terminal, the TSA goes through bags and confiscates oversized fluid containers, but no inspection occurs when trucks and vans drive through security checkpoints and out onto the tarmac. Security company FJC is responsible for protecting the airport, reports Fox 5, for which it is paid $11.5 million. The company is also responsible for security at New York area airports JFK and LaGuardia.

According to Fox 5:

The exclusive Fox 5 video shows FJC security guards stopping trucks at the checkpoint, then walking around the truck using a mirror to look at the undercarriage of the vehicle, but never actually examining the cargo inside the truck. Over and over, FJC guards do nothing more than glance inside trucks that are filled with cargo. The cursory inspections of the trucks’ contents lasted about 5 seconds and never actually involved a guard entering a single vehicle. After which the FJC guards simply waved through each and every truck. It is a security process that totally surprises counterterrorism expert Bill Vorlicek, who screened the video.

The range of risks to which the airport, passengers and employees are exposed is wide. Explosives, in particular, could cause mayhem. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives estimates that “an average delivery truck can carry anywhere from 10,000 to 60,000 tons of explosives,” reports Fox 5.

Port Authority COO Ernesto Butcher told Fox 5 the security lapses were “unacceptable.” The report continues:

“Vehicle inspections are just one of a series of multilayered checks to ensure the safety of cargo being brought to the secure side of the airport, but they are critical and will be continually monitored,” Butcher said in a statement. “Port Authority officials have re-emphasized to all FJC security guards and their supervisors the need for continual diligence and proper inspection techniques during their shifts.”