Woman Claims She Missed Flight Because Of Gender

No gropes for the boys.
http://denver.cbslocal.com/2012/02/09/woman-claims-she-missed-flight-because-of-gender/

 

If TSA is screening anyone, they should be screening everyone one. TSA doesn't get a free pass there. If they weren't so fixated on crotches & boobs, this wouldn't be a problem.

However, the passenger doesn't get a pass either. When your flight is delayed, you should stay in the gate area. Now matter what their estimate might be, it can leave at any time and will leave as soon as possible. Whether that's 5 minutes ahead of their estimate or an hour ahead, if you're not there, you lose.

This woman not only left the gate area, she left the terminal.

 

Both screwed up, but what gets me, is it was onlya 6 hour drive. Why the (expletive deleted) was she flying in the first place? These "Short Hoppers" are what mess things up for other travelers.

 

We have heard that if no females are available, males will do pat downs of females. And we have heard that it is common at smaller airports.

 

But of course none were available to screen her this time. Terrorist-foiling unpredictability and all that jazz.

 

Did you read the article linked in the OP? It says that the sole female screener went home for the day, and that not only did the airline but also the TSA "officer" made announcements.

Now, yes it was stupid for this pax to leave the terminal.

However, how stupid is TSA to not be properly staffed? It's not like they don't have thousands literally standing around in order to Touch Sexual Assets.

 

Security theater must take a back seat to the U.S. Economy and the Bill of Rights.

Recreational pawing at this woman's body is not more important than her right to travel and to contract for services without government interference.

We cannot allow it to become generally assumed that the TSA dog and pony show is a pre-requisite for air travel. If the TSA is able and willing to perform, then let them perform - SATISFACTORILY. If they're falling down on the job, so what? The TSA's failure to perform should NEVER hold up a traveler or impede commerce.

 

In the article it indicates that SkyWest told TSA that no additional passengers would be accepted. I think we are missing some information from this story, was the plane closed up? Was there a reasonable chance for the passenger to make it to the gate from the checkpoint before the door was closed? If the TSA group working the checkpoint were closed down or in the process of closing down, and the airline had informed them no further passengers are inbound, it makes it a bit difficult to blame this one on TSA.

I work at a smaller airport and there have been numerous nights where the airlines last flight had been checked in, "all" passengers were down and the airline informed us that no further passengers are being accepted, and the checkpoint was closed for the night (all the machines are down or off, and the staff - for the most part, have already left the area to go home)... Only to have a frantic passenger run up to the checkpoint area 20 minutes later as the plane is backing away from the gate and demand to be allowed through.

 

Denver serves 15 airlines. That hardly sounds like a small airport. All TSA checkpoints should be 100% operational if the airport is open.

From my observations the problem seems to be too many TSA employees standing around doing nothing useful. Really no female screener at all at Denver during this time?

 

good point. I was in SEA awhile back, making a connecting flight from Portland where our flight had been delayed by an hour and a half; we got in after the "doors had been closed" and no more passengers were being boarded. But someone on our flight had a buddy on the other side of the doors who opened them up, and in we went. This was in the secure area so no TSA issues. So the "no more passengers" thing is a red herring. The TSA looks like it had a small screw-up here by closing shop just a tad early. The passenger was responsible for most of the problem.

 

Even if there had been a female screener present, it'd just mean more TSA employees NOT standing around, but still doing nothing useful.

 

OK, was the lady going to Denver or from Denver? Sounds like she was headed to Denver from a podunk airport but that shouldn't matter. TSA should be manned at all times during flight operations at all airports serviced. What would have happened had the airplane had to return to the gate for some reason and people ended up needing to be rescreened for some reason?

 

The plane appears to have been going from Littleton to Denver.

In smaller airports they just wand people. Wand them!

Imagine all of the amazing non-metallic bombs that are getting into the nation's air transport system from these smaller airports!

 

She offered to be checked by a male TSA clerk. TSA refused. They were wrong to do that. She still shouldn't have been out of the boarding area and brought much of this problem on herself.

 

Maybe she needed to be back by the end of the day? That's her choice, her prerogative. Until TSA got so vile, we did many short haul flights instead of driving.

 

Including the undetectable (even by Nude-O-Scope) underwear bombs.

 

And we've heard anecdotes about women being coerced into not opting out since the grope would be conducted male TSA employee.

 

Then they sit on the plane with the doors sealed shut for 16hrs/overnight on the tarmac.
Like in Rochester, MN a few years back.
(Sucks to be you if you have a medical emergency, no food or water, etc.)

 

Rochester wasn't for 16 hours. Also note that it was the operator on the ground (Delta/Northwest's regional airline) that got a hefty fine for refusing to provide assistance in that case.

 

Just saw piece on this fiasco in the London Daily Mail paper.