Database

Stumbled on This.

TSA hamstrung

Or Bogged Down, which is it.

Let's burn carbon at altitude

Great Ideas.

Wi-Fi in the Sky

For the Addict.

DHS OIG

Immigration Report.

Food Poisoning on Flights

The Roaches are working overtime.

Warning Letters to Airlines.

Getting the best airfare

From DOT.

low on fuel

American wants its pilots to carry less fuel.

Recommended Reading

Recommended Reading: Willful Neglect-the Dangerous Illusion of Homeland Security, by Charles S. Faddis. ( author is the now retired chief-of-station in the Middle East for the CIA and leader of the first CIA mission into Iraq in 2002 in preparation for the invasion of that country).

Intermodal Transporation Facilities

See, security of.

Mass Transit- GAO Study

Target.

Full Body Scans

Financial Interests in Whole Body Scans by Federal Program Actors.

Napalitano.

TSA's Docs.

FAA on Radiation Exposure at Altitude.

WHO Info Sheet On Radiation Exposure for Travelers.

Journal Abstract (from 2000) on Radiation and Air Travel.

Bad Attitudes at Security.

PBS.

Cite this as: BMJ 2010;340:c993

news ticker

NewsNow.

the mental health of air marshalls

Duh.

15 June 2010



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

http://www.federalregister.gov/OFRUpload/OFRData/2010-14559_PI.pdf

OMB No. 1652-0043

[9110-05-P]

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Transportation Security Administration

Intent to Request Renewal From OMB of One Current Public Collection of Information: Office of Law Enforcement/Federal Air Marshal Service Mental Health Certification

AGENCY: Transportation Security Administration, DHS.

ACTION: 60-day notice.

SUMMARY: The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) invites public comment on one currently approved information collection request (ICR), OMB control number 1652-0043, abstracted below, that TSA will submit to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for renewal in compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act. The ICR involves a certification form that applicants for the Office of Law Enforcement/Federal Air Marshal are required to complete regarding their mental health history.

DATES: Send your comments by [Insert date 60 days after date of publication in the Federal Register].

ADDRESSES: Comments may be mailed or delivered to Joanna Johnson, Communications Branch, Business Management Office, Office of Information Technology, TSA-11, Transportation Security Administration, 701 South 12th Street, Arlington, VA 20598.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Joanna Johnson at the above address, or by telephone (571) 227-3651 or facsimile (571) 227-2907

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Comments Invited

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), an agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB control number. The ICR documentation is available at www.reginfo.gov. Therefore, in preparation for OMB review and approval of the following information collection, TSA is soliciting comments to--

(1) Evaluate whether the proposed information requirement is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information will have practical utility;
(2) Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden;

(3) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and

(4) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including using appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

Information Collection Requirement:

Pursuant to 49 U.S.C. 44917, TSA has authority to provide for deployment of Federal Air Marshals (FAMs) on passenger flights and provide for appropriate training, supervision, and equipment of FAMs. In furtherance of this authority, TSA policy requires that applicants for the Office of Law Enforcement/ Federal Air Marshal positions meet certain medical and mental health standards.

In order to evaluate whether applicants meet TSA standards, applicants must undergo a psychological evaluation determining that they do not have an established medical history or clinical diagnosis of psychosis, neurosis, or any other personality or mental disorder that clearly demonstrates a potential hazard to the performance of FAM duties or the safety of self or others. As part of the psychological evaluation, applicants are required to complete a certification form regarding their mental health history and provide an explanation for anything they cannot certify. Applicants will be asked whether they can certify various statements including that they have never been removed from work for medical or psychological reasons.

Upon completion, applicants submit the certification form directly to the FAMS’ Medical Programs Division (FAMS MPD) for initial screening via fax, electronic upload via scanning document, mail, or in person. The FAMS MPD screens all certification forms received. Any explanations for uncertified items received will generally require further review and follow-up by a contract psychologist or psychiatrist. This certification is carefully geared to capitalize on other elements of the assessment process, such as personal interviews, physical task assessment, background investigation, as well as the other components of the medical examination and assessment. TSA estimates that there will be 10,000 respondents annually.

It will take each respondent approximately one hour to complete the certification form for a total annual hour burden of 10,000 hours.

Issued in Arlington, Virginia, on June 10, 2010.

Joanna Johnson,
Paperwork Reduction Act Officer,
Office of Information Technology.

[FR Doc. 2010-14559 Filed 06/15/2010 at 8:45 am; Publication Date: 06/16/2010]



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It's ALIVE!

Resurrection of Background Checked Traveler's Programs offer little more than a cut in line.

"The whole thing is a joke." Michael Boyd, AviationPlanning.com.

Body Scanners arrive at San Jose

bodyscanner.

flash cards

Acquiring a New Language and Danger in Airport Security.

It is worth noting that Richard Reid, the "shoebomber". was in an intensive question/answer session with Paris Security for many hours, before being released to walk around Paris, where it was (thank you, God) raining, which is the only reason his attempt to light his shoes on fire failed. So, I don't have a lot of faith in "behavior detection" police. I've got more faith in the weather.. .and the flight attendants.

The ACLU brings suit.

Hat Tip to Bruce Schneier, Security Expert
Read His Blog Regularly.

Aviation Law and Policy

via DePaul University.

Aviation Consumer Report

June 2010.

BTS gateway.

More.

Aviation Safety

A Risk based approach. Hey, I didn't say it. . .I'm just passing it along, they called it that.

InFlight Entertainment

"Passengers Are Trapped. Best Not Bang On Their Cage." Michael Boyd, AviationPlanning.com.


MoneyBall, by Michael Lewis
MoneyBall.

From the same matchless mind that gave us Sandra Bullock’s BlindSide Oscar role, a chance to see and hear (the writing is so vivid, you're practically there)the deal making of professional baseball, America’s favorite summer game.





Burning Rainbow Farm
(How a Stoner Utopia Went Up In Smoke)
By Dean Kuipers

Burning Rainbow Farm.

Woodstock as Business Model meets a David Koresh, Waco-type, asset forfeiture proceeding.

Startling. Scary. and Apparently. Routine.


Girls Like Us
By Sheila Weller

Girls Like Us.

Carly Simon, Joni Mitchell and Carole King, the songs of a generation and the lives that inspired them; please don’t let your daughters take their liberties for granted; steep them in the history of the struggle and the clarion call of the compelling music of these trail blazers. Think of it as History Camp.

For Your MP3 Player

The Best of Sade, therapy for your soul

Angelic.

For your vacation work-out (better save this until you have room to move, you will not be able to sit still). And by the way, if you are an American, do NOT go for your daily run in a neighborhood that the hotel staff assures you is "safe". Use the hotel gym instead, pretend you are a hampster on a wheel. Actually, I am a hampster on a wheel, just . . .my wheel is bigger:

Al Green's Greatest Hits.

AviationPlanning (The Boyd Group)

Read the HotFlash column dealing with the Registered Traveler's Phoenix-like rise. It's from June 1st.

Airline Mergers GAO Study

Congressional Testimony.

Blueprint

White House Report on U.S. Security.

Arrested on Entry

The US-Mexico border has historically served as the staging ground for some of the most visible and contentious strategies to stop people from illegally migrating to the United States. These include border blockade strategies; construction of an actual fence and attempts to create a “virtual” fence consisting of towers, cameras, and remote sensors; use of the National Guard to support the Border Patrol; and — the focus of this article — prosecution of persons apprehended trying to cross the border illegally.


The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), the agency charged with enforcing immigration laws and securing the country’s borders, introduced “Operation Streamline” in 2005 along a five-mile high-traffic stretch of the Southwest border. The program has since expanded to include portions of five out of nine Southwest Border Patrol sectors.


“Operation Streamline” targets illegal border-crossers for criminal prosecution prior to placing them in civil removal (deportation) proceedings. The program’s “zero tolerance” policy contrasts with traditional practices of placing unauthorized border-crossers in civil deportation proceedings and permitting many to depart the country voluntarily.


Arrested on Entry.


Source: Migration Information Source (Migration Policy Institute)

Airline Employment

Wednesday, May 26, 2010 –

U.S. scheduled passenger airlines employed 6.4 percent fewer pilots and 7.2 percent fewer maintenance workers in 2009 than in 2008 while total industry jobs declined by 4.1 percent, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) reported today (Table 1).
BTS, a part of the Research and Innovative Technology Administration, reported that the seven large network carriers employed 4.2 percent fewer pilots and 9.4 percent fewer maintenance workers in 2009 than in 2008. A separate group of the seven largest low-cost carriers employed 0.3 percent fewer pilots but 9.5 percent more maintenance workers from 2008 to 2009.


Delta Air Lines added 190 pilots, a 3.0 percent increase, the only network airline pilot increase from 2008 to 2009 while United Airlines had the greatest percentage decrease in pilot employment of the network airlines, -12.1 percent. Northwest Airlines had the largest increase in maintenance workers of any network airline from 2008 to 2009 while United Airlines had the largest decrease (Table 2).
Low-cost carriers JetBlue, Southwest and Virgin America added pilots from 2008 to 2009 while the other low-cost carriers reduced pilots. Spirit Airlines had the largest decrease in pilot employment followed by Allegiant Airlines. Virgin America had the largest increase in maintenance workers of any low-cost airline from 2008 to 2009 while AirTran had the only reduction (Table 3).


Full Report (PDF).


Airline Financials.

Arizona's Papers Please Law

From the Annenberg Foundation's Fact Check Website:

We’ll leave it to others to decide whether Arizona’s new immigration law is a good thing or a bad thing — but here we try to straighten out some of the confusing factual claims. First, a quick summary. Contrary to what the law’s defenders often say, the new statute does more than merely mirror federal law. For example:
• It’s a state crime for an illegal immigrant to apply for a job, or to solicit work publicly.
• The law also makes it a misdemeanor for a citizen driving a vehicle to stop to hire anyone if that “impedes” traffic.
• Citizens will be able to sue officials or agencies whose policies interfere with vigorous enforcement of federal immigration law.
On the much-discussed issue of whether the law permits or encourages “racial profiling,” we find:
• The amended law allows police to consider “race, color or national origin” when deciding whether to ask somebody for proof of citizenship, but only to the extent already deemed constitutional by the courts.
• It remains to be seen how police will interpret the law’s anti-profiling language in practice. State officials tell us they have yet to work out what factors police should be trained to use to establish “reasonable suspicion” of illegal status.
• Federal officials are open to criticisms similar to some of those being made about Arizona’s law. A federal manual for training state and local officials says they may consider whether a person has a “thick foreign accent” or looks “out of place” when deciding whether to ask them about their immigration status.
Finally, we examine a widely circulated chain e-mail written by an Arizona state senator who supports the law, and find her claims to be misleading. The violence against ranchers that she describes is real, but it is the work of Mexican crime cartels, not illegal immigrants.


Arizona’s Papers-Please Law.

From Courthousenews.com:

Request for preliminary injunction and memorandum of law

Litigation seeking to prevent implementation.

Update: July 23, 2010: Mexico gets their own two cents worth in:

Via Courthousenews.com.

TSA evaluation

From the Federal Register, May 26, 2010.

Passenger Behavior Report

GAO Report.

Cornell's Regulations Room

Proposed Rule Changes for Air Passenger Consumer Protection.

Participate in the Debate.

Docket Number Info.

Actual Text of the proposed rules changes (click on the pdf icon for the complete 84 pages.