This is the pot calling the kettle black so I disclaim and admit upfront that I'm as guilty for acts like this in the past as the people in question today. In the 80s and 90s I regularly used influence and relationships to pull all kinds of VIP stunts at airports. Upgrades to first class on student tickets. VIP parking the the Police department lots (I knew the cops at the airport very well), getting people through customs by having them whisked off the plane before other passengers and even having planes held to insure connections were made. This was all part of not so much who I was, but more of who I knew and more importantly, how to get around the system.
Maybe I watch too much "24" or "Alias" but now, in the post 9-11 era at airports, passengers, law enforcement, TSA and the hired ticket/bording pass inspectors alike all need to be vigilant and work to prevent and eliminate the potential shortcomings that could jeopardize all travelers safety. Today in Philadelphia around 810 AM I witnessed a Southwest Airlines ground crew member, complete with his ID badge and outside weather overcoat, waltz a friend or relative past an entire line of passengers that ran some 300 yards or more due to a broken X-Ray machine. He took her right up to the TSA security so she would not have to stand in line like everyone else had to do. Given there were hundred of people standing single file in line (like me) who had arrived with enough time to make our flights, but discovered as TSA official admitted, an unexpected situation caused by a malfunctioning X-Ray machine, I found the entire incident rather interesting.
The independently hired non-TSA ticket inspector was doing someone what is called a "solid" in street talk. That's when you do a favor for a favor. Unfortunately the TSA has no direct control over the ticket inspectors, yet they do have the authority to correct the situation. But what else could happen because of so called "friendships" and being in the confidence of someone with access to the restricted zones at our airports.
This situation is also worsened by the fact that some passengers had to be purged from the line by Southwest and the TSA to get through to make their flights so this was not the time to be skirting and abusing authority because someone knows the system. Fortunately, unlike in some other situations, no one noticed and made a scene out of the transgression, and there were some very frustrated people who as they arrived closer to their flight times saw how long the line was and wondered if they would make their flights. But the female passenger in question was not a flight crew member, nor was the ground crew clad employee part of the Passenger facing staff, she also didn't appear to be rushed. You see, she had the edge and the benefit of someone with an Airline ID badge to get her to the front of the line.
As I walked briskly through terminal E in Philadelphia I walked passed him at a gate talking to another ops person. He still had his outdoor weather guard apparel on. Clearly this was not a baggage handler or gate agent, but more importantly someone with access who can get in and out of so called secure facilities and more importantly, leverage that status to hand out favors and liberties. So now lets reverse the favor. What if that ticket screener had asked the Southwest ground employee to get something done. Would it be a favor for a favor? And where does the line get drawn?
I hope this reaches the executives at SouthWest, an airline I love. But it appears that as they expand, their customer friendly nature may have gone to far, at least in this case.
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