The March arrest of two Comair employees and three accomplices for smuggling drugs and guns onto a Delta Air Lines flight from Orlando to San Juan, Puerto Rico understandably raised a lot of questions from the traveling public and, as expected, drew a strong reaction from the Transportation Security Administration. Since then the TSA has launched a series of what it called “surge operations” involving spot checks of employees and airliners across the country. Now, Congressional support for a bill sponsored by Rep. Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.) to mandate full screening of all airline employees has gained momentum.
Opponents argue that more screening simply isn’t necessary because employees submit to FBI background checks during the hiring process. Furthermore, they say, the logistics involved would simply prove infeasible because employees must exit and enter sterile areas all day long. Employees conceivably could have to wait hours in line to get cleared to go to work. Screeners would have to check mechanics’ tool boxes every time they pass through a checkpoint. And what does a screener do with a legitimate tool that could double as a weapon?
