Oh, that is the beauty of our government. Some stupid higher up manager got approval from his higher up to authorize this stupid plan of action. No one is smart enough, especially TSA, to act on their own.

I don't think police would give a damn if you had strong reason to believe that your airplane was being broken into and your life was in danger.

 

Pilots Furious Over TSA-Damaged Airplanes

Fourteen American Eagle aircraft were damaged overnight on Monday at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport when a TSA inspector used instrument probes as handholds to test the security of the aircraft from tampering, ABCNews reported. Over 40 flights were delayed on Tuesday while mechanics checked the airplanes. "Our inspector was following routine procedure for securing the aircraft that were on the tarmac," TSA official Elio Montenegro told ABC. However, "There is a sign that clearly says don't step," Mary Frances Fagan, a spokeswoman for American Airlines, which operates American Eagle, told the Chicago Tribune. One pilot who posted on an Internet forum wrote, "The brilliant [TSA] employees used an instrument located just below the cockpit window that is critical to the operation of the onboard computers. They decided this instrument, the TAT probe, would be adequate to use as a ladder."

TSA workers will be retrained to ensure that the problem doesn't happen again, Montenegro said.
AVwebFlash Complete Issue

 

It just keeps getting better.....


Yahoo!

 

I'm sure the police wouldn't, but the FFDO program is run by, guess who, the TSA.

The TSA doesn't really like being challenged, so unless that pilot wants to risk losing the privilege and/or possible civil action, it would probably be a good idea to keep the gun put away outside the aircraft, no matter the reason.

The TSA is the main reason the program is so bogged down by procedures and is a general pain in the ass for those involved.

Before someone here starts freaking out, for the record, I'm not an FFDO and have just spent some time on this website.

APSA - Airline Pilots Security Alliance

 

ABC News: Aviation Community In Uproar Over TSA's Botched Security Check

Pilots Outraged Over TSA Snafu That Grounded Nine Planes


By JOSEPH RHEE and ERIC LONGABARDI
August 20, 2008


var addthis_pub = 'abcnews';
Pilots around the country expressed outrage and concern today about the safety of their planes following an incident where a TSA inspector, conducting a spot security check, used sensitive instrument probes as a handhold to climb onto parked aircraft at Chicago's O'Hare airport. As reported on ABCNews.com, the incident led to the grounding of nine American Eagle planes, causing a ripple effect that delayed 40 flights throughout the day.
Pilots around the country expressed outrage and concern on Wednesday over the safety of their planes following a TSA inspector's spot security check.
(ABC News)


Today pilots weighed in with hundreds of complaints on internet aviation forums over whether TSA inspectors were properly qualified to conduct such airplane safety checks, according to Jim Campbell of Aero-News Network, a widely-read aviation industry news service. Campbell said he received over 600 e-mails from worried pilots and other aviation workers.

"This was and is a deadly serious issue," one e-mailer wrote. "I envision something like a TSA inspector trying to remove a prop lock as part of a security check and imparting a stress fracture into a blade."



TSA maintained that its agents are qualified to perform security inspections of parked airplanes. "Our inspectors are extensively trained over what their responsbility entails," TSA spokesperson Elio Montenegro told ABCNews.com. However, Montenegro said he did not know if inspectors received detailed training on aircraft flight systems.

Many pilots today expressed skepticism that TSA inspectors are properly trained. "Their job is to screen baggage and people," wrote an e-mailer. "How the TSA can train their inspectors on every single different style and type of airplane is a question many would like answered. Flight attendants and pilots go to school for months just to learn one specific make and model... but TSA inspectors can apparently walk onto ANY aircraft at ANY time and know exactly what belongs and what doesn't."

Given the sensitivity of the equipment affected by yesterday's incident, Campbell said TSA's security program could have deadly consequences. "I flat out predict that if this continues, an aircraft will be brought down," said Campbell.

 

TSA maintained that its agents are qualified to perform security inspections of parked airplanes. "Our inspectors are extensively trained over what their responsbility entails," TSA spokesperson Elio Montenegro told ABCNews.com

Apparently they are not trained enough!

 

Exactly!!

Mr. Montenegro, how bout you start out with a simple apology and admission first.

 

Makes one wonder what entails "Extensive training" Maybe they should let us all know how they define Extensive?

I'm sure those 20 year old kids are suited to these responsibilities

 

"Extensive" is Ebonics for "very little and insufficient" ...

note: also see "retarded", "brain dead", "incompetent" & "useless".

 

Next to a picture of Montenegro