Airport Scanner Experience

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Doriangray6

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Flying back from the Netherlands last year I changed flights in Chicago and when I went through the Starship Enterprise body scanner airports are now using it picked up three metal signals, two from the buckles on my bibs, hey they're comfy to travel in, and one from my right ankle so security pulled me over for a follow up scan and inspection.
I look over at the screen and see a red dot at my ankle as the guy is searching around it and ask him if the machine indicated there is metal there. When he said yes I told him that there's about half an inch of a 10mm drill bit in the ankle that broke off during one of the many reconstructions it's been through and I'd be happy to take my socks off so he can see the scars if he wants me to.
He just stood up, looked at me oddly, said "Have a nice journey sir" and waved me on my way. :cool:
 
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Years ago flying from home to St Louis had to go through the machine. Big yellow circle pops up around my knee. Get pulled aside for pat down and investigation. No metal in my knee, no nothing. What was it, the folded up portion of my jeans at the knee looked suspicious to the machine. Asked the agent who checked me if everything was good with me, they replied yeah the machine has been acting weird all morning. I will try and smuggle extra blue jean material through another way next time.
 
Going through customs from a cruise ship in Singapore a couple of years ago, a woman was arrested as "a person of interest" from facial recognition and AI. Turns out that she was the last person in a jewelry store that had been shop lifted there the previous year. It seems that they use all of those security cameras that they have everywhere, and they don't mess around there. Coming soon (if it isn't already here) to a city near you.

I don't know whatever became of her, but her husband rejoined the cruise a couple of weeks later. She did not.
 
On one of my last times ever going through TSA, my thin dress belt with the minimal metal buckle set off the klaxon and alerted the TSA SWAT team. Cowboy Bob who passed through ahead of me, with the big hat with silver trim and championship rodeo belt buckle the size of a traffic sign, walked right through. I asked the "officer" how that happens and was rewarded with the minimum-wage stare. I don't fly anymore.
 
Forty years ago before all the tough security measures I was working as a subcontractor in our airport at 2 am. I placed a box of material on the belt and as it went through the scanner the person working it eyes got huge. I looked over and it appeared like I had a gun in the box of material? I looked behind me and a security guard was laughing his butt off because he placed his weapon on top of my box. I didn't laugh and neither did the person working the scanning machine.
 
Many years ago I was assigned to escort Mrs.Coretta Scott King to the airport after she had attended her 50th class reunion at a local college. On the day before the detail, I headed over to the airport to touch base with their police chief, give him a heads up and to see the protocols they wanted to follow. When I arrived at the airport for my appointment I was in full uniform and in a fully marked patrol car. However when I got to the TSA desk they insisted on seeing my ID card. In addition, even though I was in full uniform, they still insisted on me walking through the magnetometer, which I of course set off all the bells & whistles because I was wearing a fully equipped duty gun belt. IDIOTS.
The airport TSA supervisor joined the Chief and I and he informed me that upon my return with Mrs. King, I would not be permitted past the TSA checkpoint while armed. I informed him I was assigned the responsibility for Mrs. Kings security, by the Governors office, until her plane left the ground and there was absolutely NO WAY I was going to be disarmed. The Chief intervened and offered to have one of his Officers with me until Mrs. King was off the ground and the TSA supervisor relented.
 
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At each airport they will confidently tell you that no matter what the people at another airport tell you the way THIS airport does it is the only right way.

The entire process is totally random with no oversight by the management at each airport.


LVSteve said:
The consistent inconsistency of airport security is wonderful, and probably does a great job of disrupting the bad guys.
Click to expand...
 
Where I worked we had to go through the "street side" of the terminal when the airport fire department called for an ambulance. We would park, take out the stretcher and load our equipment. We'd then walk through the terminal to the checkpoints. This was pre TSA, private security ran the security check point.

About 4:00AM one day we got a call for an inbound plane with an ill person on board. We responded as above and were stopped by an elderly security guard at the check point. He wanted us to open every one of equipment bags and lay the contents out on the stretcher. We had a spirited discussion until a state trooper came over to escort us through and on to the plane.

As we were walking toward the gate, the trooper told me that airport security performed an important service. I looked at him and he said,

"Shrapnel sponges in case there is a bomb in someone's luggage."

We continued on our way to the gate.

mckenney99 said:
Many years ago I was assigned to escort Mrs.Coretta Scott King to the airport after she had attended her 50th class reunion at a local college. On the day before the detail, I headed over to the airport to touch base with their police chief, give him a heads up and to see the protocols they wanted to follow. When I arrived at the airport for my appointment I was in full uniform and in a fully marked patrol car. However when I got to the TSA desk they insisted on seeing my ID card. In addition, even though I was in full uniform, they still insisted on me walking through the magnetometer, which I of course set off all the bells & whistles because I was wearing a fully equipped duty gun belt. IDIOTS.
The airport TSA supervisor joined the Chief and I and he informed me that upon my return with Mrs. King, I would not be permitted past the TSA checkpoint while armed. I informed him I was assigned the responsibility for Mrs. Kings security, by the Governors office, until her plane left the ground and there was absolutely NO WAY I was going to be disarmed. The Chief intervened and offered to have one of his Officers with me until Mrs. King was off the ground and the TSA supervisor relented.
Click to expand...
 
I have 4 screws and 2 plates in my lower back and have a card that says so, anyway I go to the Federal building( it was winter and I had a heavy coat on) when my son got sworn into the army. Get to the security guard and he wands me and of course it goes off right where you would have a gun in the waist area of your back, I was getting ready to pull my card out and he waved me through. Go figure
 
Thank God I flew many years before all the stupid tsa stuff. Later I had to fly with some tools and when my case went through the xray the tsa individual saw my " dick pins" on the holder and thought they were bullets. When I opened the case she( oops) still didnt know what they were. Had to show her attaching one to a ratchet. Ill drive anywhere I want/ need to go.
 
When I used to fly I kept a small zippered bag in my briefcase. Inside were a mini-Maglite, a small stapler and a box of staples. I carried through airports around the country without incident for about 10 years before a very diligent scanner operator (pre-TSA) made me show him the contents. By George, the way they were arranged did resemble the old Savage automatics!
 
I was passing through LAX in '23; the security screeners were in a mood. One dude with a beer belly would go along the line telling everyone to be ready to take off their shoes, have laptops out of bags, remove belts and watches. An older guy ahead of me asked about his iPad; the pus gut went off on him, loudly, condescendingly telling him 'of course,' and 'it's that way everywhere' (the right answer would have been, 'Yes, please.') in a tone of voice I found offensive. I told him, "No, it's not that way everywhere and I've been through 5 international airport screenings the past 48 hours.' He looked like he wanted argue, but I looked and smelled like someone who'd been on a plane too long. He left in a huff, which pleased everyone near enough to have heard the exchange.

My experience is that a few in US TSA and Customs are some of the rudest and most arrogant border folks you'll ever encounter.
 
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biku324 said:
I was passing through LAX in '23; the security screeners were in a mood. One dude with a beer belly would go along the line telling everyone to be ready to take off their shoes, have laptops out of bags, remove belts and watches. An older guy ahead of me asked about his iPad; the pus gut went off on him, loudly, condescendingly telling him 'of course,' and 'it's that way everywhere' (the right answer would have been, 'Yes, please.') in a tone of voice I found offensive. I told him, "No, it's not that way everywhere and I've been through 5 international airport screenings the past 48 hours.' He looked like he wanted argue, but I looked and smelled like someone who'd been on a plane too long. He left in a huff, which pleased everyone near enough to have heard the exchange.

My experience is that a few in US TSA and Customs are some of the rudest and most arrogant border folks you'll ever encounter.
Click to expand...

I have had a couple wonderful experiences with TSA. One involved a copy of Guns And Ammo magazine I had that subjected me to a more thorough fun time.

Customs have not been a problem except one time when I was bringing back a couple Rum Cakes from Tortuga, a rather young agent said I was over our allotment of booze. A more senior agent when he was done laughing allowed us to continue out of the cruise ship building.
 
NYlakesider said:
I have had a couple wonderful experiences with TSA. One involved a copy of Guns And Ammo magazine I had that subjected me to a more thorough fun time.

Customs have not been a problem except one time when I was bringing back a couple Rum Cakes from Tortuga, a rather young agent said I was over our allotment of booze. A more senior agent when he was done laughing allowed us to continue out of the cruise ship building.
Click to expand...
In my days of traveling for Uncle Sam, I had ended up on a round the world trip, starting in Egypt. Having been there many times, my "female colleagues" asked me to bring back gold cartouches for them, plus a few other "trinkets". When I landed back in Dulles, three weeks later, I declared them due to their values. So after waiting around for a 30 minutes or so, a female Customs officer asked me to explain before she assessed duties. When I told her what they were and showed that all were "female names" in the more expensive ones, showed her my PIV card and she simply asked how she could transfer to my group at NIH and waved me through. So sometimes they are civil and human. Dave_n
 
mckenney99 said:
Many years ago I was assigned to escort Mrs.Coretta Scott King to the airport after she had attended her 50th class reunion at a local college. On the day before the detail, I headed over to the airport to touch base with their police chief, give him a heads up and to see the protocols they wanted to follow. When I arrived at the airport for my appointment I was in full uniform and in a fully marked patrol car. However when I got to the TSA desk they insisted on seeing my ID card. In addition, even though I was in full uniform, they still insisted on me walking through the magnetometer, which I of course set off all the bells & whistles because I was wearing a fully equipped duty gun belt. IDIOTS.
The airport TSA supervisor joined the Chief and I and he informed me that upon my return with Mrs. King, I would not be permitted past the TSA checkpoint while armed. I informed him I was assigned the responsibility for Mrs. Kings security, by the Governors office, until her plane left the ground and there was absolutely NO WAY I was going to be disarmed. The Chief intervened and offered to have one of his Officers with me until Mrs. King was off the ground and the TSA supervisor relented.
Click to expand...
My son is a federal agent and simply shows his credentials and walks right past the TSA show. What really used to drive TSA crazy is when he was n the Navy reserves working EOD details. His uniforms always reeked of explosives and set off all the alarms. He showed them his orders and passed on through.
 
Every time I pass through the screening machine it goes off. I thought it was the zipper to my money belt. Then maybe the jeans buttons I had on the inside of the waistband of my trousers to take braces. The last time, at Roy Rogers International in Oklahoma City, I had nothing metallic on me (so I believed) and it still went off. I do have a small titanium implant where my spine was fused about 15 years ago, and it does sometimes set off the hand wand at the intake counter at work, so maybe......

Anyway I was wantded, given a pat down and my hands were swabbed for explosive residue as were my bags.

Interestingly, they did not want my brand new laptop or iPad taken out of my carryon.
 
biku324 said:
I was passing through LAX in '23; the security screeners were in a mood. One dude with a beer belly would go along the line telling everyone to be ready to take off their shoes, have laptops out of bags, remove belts and watches. An older guy ahead of me asked about his iPad; the pus gut went off on him, loudly, condescendingly telling him 'of course,' and 'it's that way everywhere' (the right answer would have been, 'Yes, please.') in a tone of voice I found offensive. I told him, "No, it's not that way everywhere and I've been through 5 international airport screenings the past 48 hours.' He looked like he wanted argue, but I looked and smelled like someone who'd been on a plane too long. He left in a huff, which pleased everyone near enough to have heard the exchange.

My experience is that a few in US TSA and Customs are some of the rudest and most arrogant border folks you'll ever encounter.
Click to expand...
As someone who lives along the border and deals with border agents rather regularly, I shall quite vehemently and vociferously defend their reputation by pointing out that TSA have absolutely ZERO border enforcement authority whatsoEVER.
They're effectively mall cops, who can approve/deny entry to the plane, and that's about it. They still need real LE to do ANYTHING else.
 
SMSgt said:
My son is a federal agent and simply shows his credentials and walks right past the TSA show. What really used to drive TSA crazy is when he was n the Navy reserves working EOD details. His uniforms always reeked of explosives and set off all the alarms. He showed them his orders and passed on through.
Click to expand...
There's a small but real chance I might know him, or at least know of him...
 
I live along the the border as well and have the greatest respect for the Border Patrol; we worked many, many critical incidents together. One of my most prized possessions is an issue USBP leather jacket from the 90s gifted by the PAIC in my District.

The TSA and Port of Entry Customs personnel are the ones to whom I was referring, both varieties of whom I most often encountered while crossing borders.
 
biku324 said:
I live along the the border as well and have the greatest respect for the Border Patrol; we worked many, many critical incidents together.

The TSA and Port of Entry Customs personnel are the ones to whom I was referring, both varieties of whom I most often encountered while crossing borders.
Click to expand...
*blinks*
Las Cruces, Deming, or Lordsburg? You may well be local to me...
 
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