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“The continued TSA security failures at airports across the country are highly concerning and a major threat we must neutralize,” Sen. Schumer said.
By Forum Staff
Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer on Monday urged the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to immediately conduct a top-to-bottom review of the effectiveness of Transportation Security Administration’s employee training procedures, as well the need for upgraded detection technology.
“In an era of lone wolf terrorists, the continued TSA security failures at airports across the country are highly concerning and a major threat we must neutralize,” Schumer said. “In light of the recent test result reports, TSA should move immediately to address all holes, shortfalls and gaps in training procedures, technology, and the entire airport security process.”
Schumer referenced “recent test result reports,” including the latest one from the DHS Office of the Inspector General, which found that the OIG office was able to evade airport screeners most of the time and sneak banned items passed TSA checkpoints.
Additionally, in 2015, media reports cited a TSA “Red Team” report suggesting agents failed to uncover 67 out of 70 threats at airports across the country. This news forced the acting head of the TSA to lose his job. Since then, the effectiveness of TSA screening has hardly improved, according to Schumer. And the congressional committee charged with homeland security expressed public concern with the TSA shortcomings.
Schumer also noted that at a Nov. 8 Homeland Security Committee hearing in Congress, Chairman Michael McCaul said that a recent briefing the Inspector General noted “vulnerabilities in covert testing” as it relates to the TSA security screening at airports. According to media reports, the most recent undercover tests, conducted this year, suggest at least an 80-percent failure rate. As part of the undercover investigation, agents successfully smuggled fake weapons, explosives, and components through security checkpoints.
New York’s senior senator called these revelations “alarming,” especially during a time in which lone wolf terrorist threats are at an all-time high. Schumer pointed to a recent threat made by terrorists planning to develop a laptop bomb. Schumer also pointed to an alarming incident last week in which a man made his way onto the tarmac of Miami International Airport after sneaking through the conveyor belt.
