Aviation securityTSA expands pilot screening program for pilots

Published 21 October 2011

Last week the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) expanded its trial program that allows pilots to skip airport security checkpoint lines to Washington Dulles International Airport; Dulles is the sixth of seven test locations for the “Known Crewmember” program which offers pilots an expedited screening process in the hopes of minimizing wait times for passengers

TSA program expedites flight crew clearance // Source: docukit.nl

Last week the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) expanded its trial program that allows pilots to skip airport security checkpoint lines to Washington Dulles International Airport.

Dulles is the sixth of seven test locations for the “Known Crewmember” program which offers pilots an expedited screening process in the hopes of minimizing wait times for passengers. Under the trial program, which was developed in conjunction with the Air Line Pilots Association and the Air Transport Association, pilots are screened at a separate checkpoint where they must show two forms of identification that are then checked against the Cockpit Access Security System database.

The database presents a recent photo of the pilot onscreen and indicates whether or not the pilot has the approval to bypass metal detectors and other scanners.

The Known Crewmember program also helps to assuage potentially angry passengers at security checkpoints when pilots skip to the front of the line.

It can be tense when you’re jumping to the front of the line,” said Sean Cassidy, a pilot for Alaska Airlines and the first vice president of the Air Line Pilots Association.

The expansion of the pilot program comes as part of TSA’s broader efforts to change how it screens passengers.

According to TSA administrator John Pistole, the agency is moving towards a tiered strategy that focuses more heavily on screening the riskiest passengers.

To that end, children under twelve are no longer required remove their shoes and the agency is testing a “Trusted Traveler” program that allows some passengers to go through expedited security checkpoints after they undergo a government background check.

In reference to the Known Crewmember program Greg Soule, a TSA spokesman, said, “This new system is a key component, as we continue to explore more risk-based, intelligence-driven security solutions.”

Later this month, the program will be expanded to Boston’s Logan Airport and in January TSA will reach a decision on whether to take the program nationwide.

Currently flight attendants are not included in the Known Crewmember program due to the way the databases are arranged, but Corey Caldwell, a spokeswoman for the Association of Flight Attendants, said she hopes attendants will be included “in the near future.”