I wouldn't know what the ORD screeners are like, but some of the ones in PHX..lord..they can really gum up stuff. Is it possible, and has it happened that a TSA screener has stopped a pilot thus delaying a flight, for unnecessary things? If so, what would the backlash be? And yes, I know what the TSA is like, when I non-rev to visit family.

Yes it does. But we're not talking about private companies competing for limited market share.

We're talking about a federal agency that has an absolute monopoly on airport security. It also has unlimited pricing power in that they can charge passengers whatever they want (they own the gateway) and have the bottomless resources of the US taxpayer to fall back upon.

If I were a unionized TSA federal employee, the last thing I'd worry about was scope. Beyond the 3.4 oz. carry on sized variety, anyway.

25k a year isn't enough for any adult working full time. We are collectively dragging ourselves down by always saying so and so makes too much. Its a vicious cycle of jealousy that favors management's desire to drive down wages in every line of work. Its part of the reason that its hard to get sympathy from the public for our plight; everyone thinks we make too much for watching the plane fly itself.

Pilots are pretty good at this but instead of saying so and so makes too much we should be saying, "I don't make enough."

You need to get your facts together. Those are Playmobil, not Lego. Geez...

by far and away the highest paying tsa job should be the hard working worker who watches everyone walk out past the checkpoint leaving the airport.

now thats a "hard - tough" 50k year a job.........HA!

Yes, it should be, I wonder when the terrorists will think of blowing up something on the way out. Then we will need more incompetent fools to get us through security on the way out. When my wife found out about the Xmas bomb attempt, she suggested explosive suppositories next. Let's have the TSA look for that All this aside, the problem that we, as Americans, is this "me,me,me" attitude, and the way we complain about our own salaries is to ***** and moan about others', while we should be figuring out ways we can increase our own income in an honest way.

......but, I'm assuming you're a controller. You screw up, other people die, you loose your job and drive home all upset.

Pilot screws up, they, along with all on-board and perhaps people on the ground, can die, liability to the company can be astronomical, and so on.

You decide you've had enough or are having a problem, you get relief and take a break. Pilots can't hit the "freeze button" and smoke a Lucky when something isn't going right.

I, for one, would never minimize the responsibility and vital role controllers play in making the system operate safely. Best example I can think of recently is watching the NY Dept controller coordinate with LGA and TEB during Cactus 1549 incident. He didn't miss a beat and stayed calm and professional throughout while offering what assistance he could. Kudos!

Having said that, please don't minimize whatever you think it is pilots do. To be honest with you, pilots don't deserve significant pay for what they do on a vanilla day despite the required training and experience to even gain the position. Of course, you can't even fly that vanilla sortie without the credentials so guess they do after all.

To be quite honest, pilots deserve it for what they have to be able to do when the feces hits the fan. While that could happen today, tomorrow or maybe never in a given pilot's career, they have to be ready to perform often with very limited options or time in many occasions. Great example, Sully successfully performing his first attempt at ditching in the Hudson. Do you suppose he thought to himself as he was taxiing past the hold short to takeoff RWY 04, "boy, wonder if I'll have that multiple bird strike, dual engine catastrophic compressor stall I've always practiced today?"

No pilot is perfect, but when situations/emergencies occur, they too cannot afford critical mistakes and have to perform.

To the title of this thread, the answer is yes, any part 121 pilot should make WAY MORE than any TSA screener and at least EQUAL to pay based on years of service that any FAA controller makes.

So, what was your point again?

Lee

I disagree with that. There is every reason that a senior controller should make more than a junior major pilot.

And every reason is..............??????

i have no point he took a cheap shot at controllers so i took my cheep shot the other way.i will add that in the 20 years i spent at chicago center and the 5 years i spent at chicago tracon not one controller was ever blamed for the loss of life from aircraft under our control due to controller fault.i think thats a pretty good record.