Airport passengers in US to be subject to a more rigorous "pat down".

A 2015 audit found that screenings at airports showed some safety vulnerability. As a result, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has decided to use a more rigorous and through screening during "pat-downs"

The new screening procedure will include "more intimate contact" than previously. The procedure will also apply to pilots and flight attendants. The TSA noted that there used to be five search options when a pat-down was being conducted. The 2015 audit revealed that small handguns and others weapons passed screening without being discovered.

One day last week security screeners found 21 firearms in carry-on bags more than ever before. The previous record was 18 set in 2014. During the whole week the TSA confiscated 79 firearms nationwide of which 68 were loaded.

TSA spokesperson Bruce Anderson said that people patted-down previously will find that the new measures are "more involved". The new measures are not expected to increase airport delays, except for the person being patted down. About two million people go through TSA screening every day.

The former five options for screening are now eliminated and there is now just one process. Denver International Airport notified employees that the "more rigorous" searches "will be more thorough and may involve an officer making more intimate contact than before." There have already been complaints of excessive intimate contact, including an article for CNN last December by Angela Rye, a CNN commentator. A video on the search is appended. The new procedures had been tested in smaller airports and are being phased in within the next two weeks. The TSA does not track the number of those subject to "pat-downs". Anyone who refuses to go through the screening machines is subject to a pat-down. A "managed inclusion" program that allowed some everyday travelers to use Pre-Check lanes to speed things up during peak times has also been eliminated. Pat-downs are always conducted by officers of the same sex as the person being patted-down. You can request a private area for the pat-down if you desire and even have a witness present. Alternatively, you can demand that the pat-down be held in public view.

The TSA conducts random searches of pilots and crew members. The number of such checks will remain the same. However, airport employees may face more random checks. TSA officials did not immediately answer an inquiry as to whether the new protocol will allow touching of passengers' genital area as happened to Angela Rye.

NASA employee a natural-born US citizen has phone confiscated with demands for access PIN code at Houston airport

Sidd Bikkannavar a natural-born American citizen claims he was detained on January 30 at Houston International Airport. This was just days after new president Donald Trump signed an executive order banning citizens from seven countries.

Bikkannavar works at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. His hobby is driving solar-powered cars and he was just returning from a race in Patagonia Chile. Bikkanavar did not expect to have any trouble going through customs. He not only holds a U.S. passport but he is also part of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) that allows pre-approved low-risk travelers expedited clearance. Instead of providing Bikkanavar expedited clearance they pulled him aside. They demanded that he turn over his work issued phone and access PIN code.

In response for a request to comment on the case, a CBP spokesperson said in an email:"U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) strives to treat all travelers with respect and in a professional manner, while maintaining the focus of our mission to protect all citizens and visitors in the United States. Due to privacy laws, U.S. Customs and Border Protection is prohibited from discussing specific cases or personally identifiable information regarding the arrival or departure of international travelers. CBP officers are charged with enforcing not only immigration and customs laws, but they also enforce over 400 laws for 40 other agencies."Bikkanavar eventually turned his phone over to the CBP agents and was then sent to a holding area. Bikkanavar finally had his phone returned and was allowed to continue his journey back home.

The Jet Propulsion Lab issued him a new phone and are "running forensics" to determine if the CPB had taken any data or installed a device according to a NASA engineer. February 3rd a judge in Seattle suspended the order and an appeals court in San Francisco unanimously upheld the ruling. Between January 27 and February 1st at least 940 people were prevented from boarding a plane.

Other scientists have also run into trouble because of the Trump ban. Samira Samimi a University of Calgary doctoral student, was born in Iran but is a permanent resident of Canada. She was to go to Greenland to repair drained batteries that are used for equipment that is used to project future sea levels. She was to get a ride on a US Air FOrce C-130 Hercules leaving from upstate New York. Samimi said in an interview:“I came so far, from the other side of the planet, to be free, to not fight for my rights anymore. And this is like a nightmare. I don’t understand how in the 21st century one man can stop this science, stop it, just like that, so easily without even thinking. I’m just sick in my stomach. I don’t want to accept that I’m not going. I can’t do that. I just can’t. This is so stupid, this so doesn’t make sense."Alternative options would cost her as much as $100,000 in new funding. With the recent suspension of the order perhaps she will be able to go after all.

The International Council for Science advocates planners of scientific meetings to ensure that participation of scientists is free from discrimination of any kind. The Council issued as statement saying: "The Council believes that the complex problems of our world can only be solved through international dialogue, collaboration and the sharing and exchange of ideas and research findings." Canadian scientists are organizing to boycott conferences in the US as long as the ban is in force as discussed in a recent DJ article.

Man and wife banned from boarding plane because of T-shirt satirizing TSA

A man and his wife were not allowed to board a Delta Airlines flight from Buffalo-Niagara airport because their satirical T-shirts supposedly made crew and passengers very uncomfortable.

Arijit Guha 31 is a doctoral student at Arizona State University. He has advanced colon cancer and has undergone extensive surgery and chemotherapy which ended up costing $118,000 more than the $300,000 cap on his student health plan, expenses that his insurer Aetna would not cover.

Guha managed to draw the CEO of Aetna Mark T. Bertolini into a heated exchange on Twitter and as the video appended shows Guha won out in the end and even won a victory for the student health plan. The usually caustic and sarcastic Guha in the end had nothing but praise for Mr. Bertolini. Guha is no stranger to controversy and he seems to enjoy being provocative. He has no praise for the TSA(Transportation Security Agency)

Guha and his wife were about to board a plane at the Buffalo-Niagara airport. They passed through security with no problem. However, he was then approached by a Delta agent who told him that his T-shirt was making passengers nervous. The offending T-shirt has a TSA logo together with text that satirizes what Guha considers the agencies paranoid and overbearing security stance.

TSA agents questioned Guha about the significance of his T-shirt. He explained that it was mocking the manner in which the TSA approached security and over-reaction by them and the public to the threat of terrorism. Ironically what was happening to Guha and his wife was a perfect exemplification of his point!

Guha was then informed that if he took off the offending shirt and again had their belongings searched they could board the flight. Guha agreed. Just as they were about to board the plane he was pulled aside again by not only a Delta supervisor but three TSA agents and several Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority police as well. There was no SWAT team however.

He and his wife were questioned again. Their bags were searched anew, the offending shirt was photographed, and they were asked multiple questions. This was all to no avail as the pilot of the plane insisted that the presence of Guha and his wife would cause discomfort to other passengers. The T-shirt text was obviously not really a satire just the plain truth.

Guha and his wife were subject to even further interrogation. Some of the questions were quite inappropriate. There is much more detail on Guha's own blog. Guha and his wife had to find overnight accommodations at their own expense and flew out the next morning at 7 AM. The TSA was kind enough not to put them on the no-fly list. Yet!

Does TSA fear diaper bombers?

An 18 month old little girl Ryanna the daughter of Middle Eastern descent Americans from New Jersey was prevented from boarding a flight from Florida. TSA agents boarded the plane just as it was about to depart. The parents who wished to remain anonymous called the whole incident absurd.

An airline employee approached the mother and told her that TSA agents were waiting to speak with the family back at the terminal. The mother asked why and the employee said: 'Well, it's not you or your husband. Your daughter was flagged as no fly.’”

The couple think that the TSA actually wanted to question them. Riyannas father said:"It's absurd," "It made no sense. Why would an 18-month-old child be on a no-fly list?" The wife wears a hijab.

The couple were humiliated and embarrassed when after the questioning they were cleared for boarding and went back to be seated in the plane that had been delayed for half an hour.

The TSA said it was a mistake by the airline that identified the little girl as on the no fly list. However, the airline said it was an issue for the TSA. It is not that uncommon for people to be interrogated because they have the same name as someone on the no fly list. No doubt this is what may have happened. However, one would think common sense would tell employees there had been some error given the age of the daughter. But maybe they fear diaper bombers. For more see this article,

Transiting a US airport

This account rings a sympathetic bell with me. I found that the cheapest way to fly to the Philippines from Winnipeg was via Chicago. On the trip out there was no problem since I went through US immigration at Winnipeg and my bags went straight through to Manila. I had no problem changing planes to catch JAL to Narita and then on to Manila.
Coming back was a different story. JAL in Manila told me my bags were booked right through to Winnipeg. I didn't believe them and I was correct. Transiting Japan from the Manila flight is no problem. You just walk from one part of the terminal to another to catch the plane to Chicago. You don't go through immigration or reclaim your bags.
When we arrived in Chicago we had to go through immigration even though we were just changing planes. There were cameras and fingerprint apparati but I wasn't required to use them or rather I just ignored them and no one said anything! The processing computer broke down so we had to wait about half an hour or longer. When I did get through I was told my bags had been taken off. I had to search around for quite a while to find out where they were deposited. By the time I found them and got to the other terminal and rechecked my bags my connecting flight was long gone. I ended up having to stay overnight and I missed meeting my wife in Winnipeg until the next day.
The other part of the story is that my wife could not come with me because she is a filipina. She would have been required to get a visa just to change planes! We decided she would just fly direct to Vancouver from Manila and then on to Winnipeg!
Fortunately my son met her at Winnipeg. Anyway, I certainly will not be taking a flight that transits through the US to the Philippines. I think I know why it is cheaper! These hassles will convince a lot of people not to take transit flights.
Of course the most famous transit flight is that of Maher Arar. When he was changing planes at New York he was whisked off to jail and sent to Syria where he was tortured.

Nonny Mouse Goes Down Under
By: Logan Murphy on Wednesday, July 25th, 2007 at 6:33 AM - PDT (Guest blogged by Nonny Mouse)

The travel and tourist industry is one of the United States’ biggest money-makers, generating $103 billion in tax revenue every year. Without this tax revenue, every American household would pay nearly $1,000 more in taxes every a year. But while the travel business is flourishing internationally, tourism to America has been on a steep decline, dropping 36 percent between 1992 and 2005, with a loss of $43 billion in 2005 alone. The nation’s international tourism balance of trade declined more than 70 percent over the past 10 years - from $26.3 billion in 1996 to $7.4 billion in 2005.

People are simply choosing to go elsewhere. But as a follow-on to Logan Murphy’s excellent post on the increasing invasion of privacy by the soon-to-be approved Passenger Name Record for passengers entering international airports, allow me to present a personal view into why tourists are deciding not to spend their money visiting the States.

I moved from Great Britain to New Zealand last week, requiring a flight of 26 hours crammed into a big metal tube with about four hundred other brave souls, the vast majority of us packed into the Economy Class part of a 747, with the usual narrow seats, no leg rests, and poor overheated air ventilation that inevitably leads to sharing every virus on board with everyone else. I dropped at least half my on-board meals down my cleavage trying to eat with elbows pressed together, my ankles swelled to the size (and shape) of a small elephant’s, my calves were a mass of cramps, my eyes throbbed from trying to watch too many movies on a tiny screen eight inches from my nose, my back ached from trying to sleep at twisted, unnatural angles, and my throat tickled with what I knew would end up being a full blown head cold. No, long-haul flights are not fun. People take them because it’s about the only way to get where they really, really want to go. And I really, really wanted to go to New Zealand.

At least there was a chance for a small break once we’d landed in Los Angeles to change flight crews, restock the food galleys and drinks trolleys and refuel the plane, a chance to stretch our legs in the transit lounge and take a breath of fresh air. So you would think…

And you would be so wrong.



We were told to disembark with all our carry-on luggage, leaving nothing on board. Those who were flying from London to Auckland were told to line up against a wall in a corridor while those whose flights terminated at Los Angeles filed past and disappeared. And there, in a hot, cramped corridor we stood and waited. And waited. And waited. I finally couldn’t stand it, and asked where to find the ladies’ loo – to be ordered not to leave the line. (Sod that, thought I, or rather, my bladder) and I wandered up the queue to discover that we were being processed, slowly, one by one, by a single officer in a tiny booth. After a quick dash to a toilet, I made my way back down the line to where I’d left my new comrades-in-arms – Judy, a petite, smartly dressed 61-year-old Kiwi schoolteacher in London on compassionate leave going home to Auckland to see her terminally ill father, and Derek, a wiry Scots engineer with an acerbic sense of humour. ‘You bloody Yanks seem to think terrorism is something new and only ever happens to Americans,’ he groused to me. Being possibly the only bloody Yank going from London to New Zealand, I became by default the sole available representative for my fellow countrymen. ‘We’ve had the IRA and the French have the Algerians and the Spanish have ETA. Now you know what the rest of Europe’s been living with for the last few hundred years. Why don’t you lot just grow up?’ Heads around us nodded in irritated agreement.

To our relief, we were finally moved out of the corridor, all following another LAX official to what we were expecting to be the transit lounge… but to our collective dismay, we were herded into a bigger Immigration area, where all those who were not US passport holders filled out long green cards asking detailed personal information, to be handed over to US Immigration officials busy taking everyone’s fingerprints and photographs. There was some confusion about just what to do with me, as I was a US citizen, but was flying on to New Zealand. Eventually, I was given a shorter blue form to fill out. A couple of students with worried expressions – Germans, I think, judging from the language – were being led away by uniformed police who were having interpretation problems. It was a very repressive and rather frightening atmosphere.

Bear in mind here… we were all ‘non-stop’ transit passengers, due to get straight back on the same plane we’d just gotten off and fly on to Auckland, never setting foot outside the airport and onto American soil.

Judy, in her strong Kiwi accent, demanded from one of the officials standing guard around us why they needed to take our fingerprints or our photographs. ‘It’s the law,’ he mumbled, a bit shamefaced, and spouted a few disconnected bits of pre-memorized clichés about terrorism and security before stuttering to a halt and looking away. Not even the officials at the airport understood why.


The Immigration official at the booth was not so polite to her. ‘Take your glasses off,’ he demanded. I could see her stiffen, an elderly respectable schoolteacher unused to being so brusquely ordered around. ‘I beg your pardon? Why do I need to take my glasses off? What right do you have to take my fingerprints or my photograph?’

Again, came the refrain. ‘It’s the law’.

We finally were allowed, once we’d all been ‘processed’, to sit down and have a cup of tea or coffee in the transit lounge… for about fifteen minutes before they reloaded the plane. Judy looked angry and close to tears. ‘I’ve never been treated like this before,’ she said. ‘It’s all one thing when you read about it, but having to actually submit to being fingerprinted? I feel… violated. Like I’m some sort of criminal.’

Would she ever consider returning to the States, as a tourist?

Absolutely not. And the next time she flew from London to Auckland, she’d make damned sure the flight did not stop to refuel in America.

This was pretty much the general feeling of every passenger on that flight – none of them had ever intended to enter the United States; it was just a place they had to wait in transit to somewhere else. But their experience had soured them on even considering the States as a potential holiday spot to visit. It didn’t matter how cheap the US dollar got.

And they have friends and families, too. Some people don’t like it when their 61-year-old mothers are treated like potential al Qaeda terrorists.

While the rest of the world is enjoying a boom in tourism, and our own tourist industry is begging the government for a let-up on such draconian policies, the abysmal way we are treating air passengers – even those who have nothing to do with visiting America as tourists – is costing the country millions of dollars a day, our reputation as debased as our currency.

We are not becoming a police state.

We are one.