One of the last TSOs to go through the Rev9 training forgot that he was scheduled for the class. He had been told, but it was his Monday, and he showed up at the ckpt at his usual time, some 3-4 hrs before the Rev9 class was to start.
Not seeing his name on the b-sheet, and still not remembering the class, he called the SCC to find out why his name was not listed.
A couple of minutes later, the ckpt was treated to the sight of Russ Mackey yelling at the TSO at the top of his lungs. He yelled: "Get out! Get off the checkpoint! Get out right now!"
The TSO, having a couple of hours to kill before class, went to HR and complained to Rosalie Aranda about Mackey's behavior.
Rosalie called Mackey up for a chat. Shortly thereafter, Mackey apologized to the TSO. The TSO got to the Rev9 class on time.
This story doesn't come as much of a surprise, considering Mackey's hotheadedness. Then again, Covenant Aviation Security seems to foment this type of behavior from its managers and supervisors. Must we remind you about Shelley Burrell, Anthony Nguyen, Linda Widden, Curtis Boggs, or Gerardo Sanchez?
TICAL NOTEBOOK
ReplyDeleteGroup slams Chertoff on scanner promotion
January 2, 2010
WASHINGTON - Since the attempted bombing of a US airliner on Christmas Day, former Homeland Security secretary Michael Chertoff has given dozens of media interviews touting the need for the federal government to buy more full-body scanners for airports.
What he has made little mention of is that the Chertoff Group, his security consulting agency, includes a client that manufactures the machines. Chertoff disclosed the relationship on a CNN program Wednesday, in response to a question.
An airport passengers’ rights group on Thursday criticized Chertoff’s use of his former government credentials to advocate for a product that benefits his clients.
“Mr. Chertoff should not be allowed to abuse the trust the public has placed in him as a former public servant to privately gain from the sale of full-body scanners under the pretense that the scanners would have detected this particular type of explosive,’’ said Kate Hanni, founder of FlyersRights.org, which opposes the use of the scanners.
Chertoff’s advocacy for the technology dates to his time in the Bush administration. In 2005, Homeland Security ordered the government’s first batch of the scanners - five from California-based Rapiscan Systems. Rapiscan is one of only two companies that make full-body scanners in accordance with current contract specifications required by the federal government.
Currently 40 body scanners are in use among 19 US airports. The number is expected to skyrocket, at least in part because of the Christmas Day incident. The Transportation Security Administration has said it will order 300 more machines.
In the summer, TSA purchased 150 more machines from Rapiscan with $25 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds. Rapiscan was the only company that qualified for the contract because it had developed technology that performs the screening using a less-graphic body imaging system, which is also less controversial. (Since then, another company, L-3 Communications, has qualified for future contracts, but no new contracts have been awarded.)
-- Washington Post