Complaint letter regarding screening in India

Dear Continental Airlines,

I experienced a deeply offensive and indecent sexual invasion while
boarding as a BusinessFirst passenger on Continental 83J
departing Delhi (DEL) bound for Newark (EWR) at 10:45pm on May 29, 2011,
at Gate 1A. After clearing security at Delhi, I found a second security
checkpoint blocking the boarding gate. Without speaking a single word,
without obtaining or even seeking my consent for sexual contact between
us, a complete stranger placed the fronts of her open hands on my
breasts and fondled me. She ran her fingers deliberately multiple times
over my chest, rubbing my nipples through my clothing. My husband is a
Star Alliance Gold flyer with your airline. This incident will reduce
his flying and end mine, since I never intend to be vulnerable to
such exploitation again.

Immediately after the assault, I reported it to a United/Continental employee.
Airline representatives at the gate heard my verbal summary of the matte
r, and took my name, but because final boarding was about to expire I
did not manage to file a written complaint. This is that written
complaint. I will forward this complaint to my representatives at all
levels of government, to the Indian government, and to Indian airline
authorities. The representatives at the checkpoint told me the woman,
Kajal, worked for Indian Airline Security, and said they would speak
with Kajal's supervisor about my statement. This pointless violation of
my body and my dignity had absolutely zero security value. I was not
thoroughly checked. Only three areas of my body were touched: my
nipples/breasts, my torso, and my buttocks.

Your airline must protest these utterly worthless sexualized searches,
because degrading your customers harms your business. Please do not
send me a form letter stating that security is out of your hands:
you are responsible for every rape victim re-traumatized, every little
girl whose bathing suit areas are violated, every disabled person
forced to crawl through a metal detector without his braces, every
genital inspection, every bit of radiation damage, every naked image
of a child transmitted to a secret viewing booth, as long as you stay
silent about these injustices. This is not the first time I have been
sexually abused by airline security; a few years ago a woman inserted
a metal detecting wand in between my labia, pushing my underwear into
my vagina. I have heard dozens of first-hand accounts from victims who
have been degraded, humiliated, and traumatized by inhumane treatment
at airports, and we demand action.

I am sorely disappointed in United and Continental for
cooperating with and making excuses for my abusers. Opposing the
depraved molestation of your customers makes good business sense and is
the only moral course of action. I entreat you to protect me by publicly
opposing intentional genital, breast, buttock, perineal, and anal
contact between screeners and passengers. Real security requires police
work to identify dan gerous individuals. Universal sexualized searches
do not make me safe. My body is my own! There is nothing even remotely
*safe* about strangers shoving their hands down my pants, rubbing my
nipples, or inspecting my genitalia.

Sincerely,
Mybodyismyown

 

Very well written, and welcome to Travel Underground! If you have not already done so, I would recommend mailing a copy to UA/CO HQ in Chicago. I can provide you with the address, if that is a path you would like to take.

 

I'll add my welcome, and kudos for a well-written and straightforward letter!

 

+1 to this.

Politicians mostly want the appearance of doing something. The only way we're going to get results is by making the airlines feel our displeasure in their corporate treasuries.

 

I did send this letter to United, Continental, and the Delhi Airport. Here is a response from United:

Dear mybodyismyown,

Thank you for your patience with the delay of our response. I just
received your email.

I am sorry the security measures you experienced in Delhi upset you and
created a negative impression for air travel. I understand you did not
want to hear that United is not responsible for security screening at
the different airports; however we must comply with all government
direct security policies in every country we operate.

Please allow me to suggest you forward your letter to the Transportation
Security Administration. I have forwarded your disturbing experience to
United management so they understand how this experience impacted your
perception of air travel.

At the conclusion of this email, please fill out the survey where you
can rate your experience with the Customer Care department. We value
your feedback and hope that you are satisfied with our service.

Regards,

United Airlines Customer Relations

 

Another response, from the airport. I also received a phone call from Kiran, who expressed a great interest in using my complaint to change the way things operate there.

Dear mybodyismyown,


Greetings from IGI Airport!!

I am writing on behalf of Delhi International Airport. We do acknowledge receipt of your complaint dated June 1st, 2011. The contents as described you are very disturbing and one that we do not take lightly. I understand that Kiran Jain, one of the senior members of our management team, has already reached out to you and spoken with you over the phone. As explained by her, the lady in question from the Security team, is under investigation by the airline. We at Delhi Airport do not, under any circumstance, condone this sort of behavior. In fact, upon review of your complaint, one of the measures that we have decided to take on is to train the security staff to identify themselves and let the passenger know that they are going to be searched.

Please do not let this incident deter you from future trips to India. Delhi International Airport welcomes you.

Regards

Customer Response Management
Delhi International Airport Pvt. Ltd.
IGI Airport, New Delhi

 

The UA letter was the standard form letter, and obviously does not seem to understand that you were in India.

 

Is it just me or does that reply seem at least a little hopeful? I thought OP's original letter was fantastic and not over the top at all. I'd be interested to know whether this goes any further.

 

Oh, the irony! According to my sources, it was most likely generated from India. LOL!

 

The lady from the security team is under investigation by the airline?