Ah, the dangerous liquids ban. We’re all so much safer because of it.
TSA
By 8.20.07
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Remember that guy JetBlue and the TSA wouldn’t let on a plane for wearing an Arabic shirt? He, joined with the ACLU, have just sued them for racial profiling. [Seattle Times]
By 8.6.07
../../../..//2007/08/06/from-now-on-the-tsa/
From now on, the TSA would like you to remove any XBOXs (or DVD players or Nintendos, etc…) from your carry-on during screening so they can be inspected. [USA Today]
US Gov To Compile And Share Database Of Flier Personal Information
By 7.28.07
According to the Washington Post, the United States and the European Union have agreed to compile and share a database of information on consumers who travel on aircrafts between the two continents.
Airports On High Alert After TSA Seizes Block Cheese
By 7.25.07
Logan security remains high as terror concerns are raised [Boston Globe] (Thanks to Dork Esquire!)
Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport: Secured for Only 19.5 Hours Per Day
By 7.23.07
Investigative reporters, using hidden camera footage, found that security at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport essentially shuts down for four and half hours a day. During that time, the TSA goes home, and airport security guards take over. Anyone with an employee badge walks through to the secure side of the airport. They could be carrying backpacks, duffel bags, or maybe even a shopping cart. It doesn’t get inspected.
TSA Agitated For Lifting Of Lighter Ban For Over A Year
By 7.20.07
The lighter ban’s lifting bodes well for the TSA become slightly less a giant waste of time and money, but did you know that they’ve actually wanted this for some time? In June, 2006, TSA chief Kip Hawley was quoted in USA Today as saying:
Cigarette Lighters To Be Allowed Back On Airplanes
By 7.20.07
Starting August 4, cigarette lighters will no longer be banned from airplanes, according to the New York Times. The two-year-old rule was enacted after authorities claimed that the shoe bomber (Richard Reid) might have managed to detonate his feet if he’d had a lighter instead of matches.
TSA: Where Do All The Little Scissors And Knives Go?
By 7.18.07
Last year, according to Transportation Security Administration figures, airport agents collected 12,295 “clubs, bats and bludgeons”; 1.6 million “knives and blades”; and 74,665 other objects classified as “deadly/dangerous.”
What's A Greater Threat To Airline Security?
By 7.17.07
Gawker Media polls require Javascript; if you’re viewing this in an RSS reader, click through to view in your Javascript-enabled web browser.
Mood In Airport Security Line Found Tense
By 7.17.07
The Today Show’s report on TSA procedures is mainly a bunch of crap everyone knows already, but we decided to edit together all the passenger interviews from the story to give a little dose of the current passenger mood regarding security lines. Takeaway: they hate them and would like to be able to bring on baby formula to feed their children.
TSA Confiscates Water Bottle, Misses Bomb
By 7.10.07
Federal inspectors were able to slip a bomb past the TSA 5 out of 7 times, according to the Albany Times-Union. Here’s the best part: One fake bomb was placed in the same bag as a bottle of water. The TSA opened the bag, took the water, and let the bomb on the plane.
Grandmother Busted By The TSA For Trying To Sneak A Bread Knife Past Security
By 6.22.07
Cecilia Beaman is a 57-year-old grandmother, a middle school principal and part-time terrorist. She was busted by the TSA for attempting to sneak a 5 1/2 inch bread knife with a rounded tip and a serrated blade onto an airplane.
TSA Uploads Video Of "Sippy Cup" Incident On Special "MythBusting" Website
By 6.16.07
The TSA has uploaded the incident report and surveillance video that they claim shows the “sippy cup terrorist” Mom intentionally dumping her child’s water on the floor of the airport after having claimed “she was an officer and flashed her Secret Service badge and credentials and said that she should be exempt from all this and this was a stupid policy and this whole thing was [redacted].” We’re guessing that last word was bullshit, but like we said, that’s just an educated guess.
What's The Matter With American Air Travel?
By 6.15.07
The Economist has a special report that considers the various problems with the American airline industry. Of particular interest is a survey of 519 airline passengers that posed the question, “What, if anything, do you dislike about taking a trip by plane?” The answer, overwhelmingly, was “Security measures.”
TSA Detains Mother, Threatens Arrest Over Sippy Cup Full of Tap Water
By 6.14.07
UPDATE: TSA released video of the incident: TSA Denies “Sippy Cup” Incident, Creates “MythBusting” Website In Response
TSA To Airlines: "You Owe Us $219 Million"
By 6.8.07
US Airways Group Inc. owes $18 million; UAL Corp.’s United Airlines, $15 million; Continental Airlines Inc., $14 million; Northwest Airlines Corp., $9 million; and America West Airlines, now part of US Airways, $8 million, Howe said
According to the airlines, the fees are excessive, and they’re refusing to pay them. It all stems from the way the TSA’s budget is calculated. The airlines are responsible for paying fees based on an estimation of what it cost them to run airport security in 2000. The airlines say it cost $300 million, the TSA says the real figure is closer to $750 million.
“We believe it is time for the TSA to develop a new system for allocating these costs, which is based on 2000 market shares,” said Tim Wagner, a spokesman for American, the world’s largest airline. “This old system is fundamentally unfair.”
