CAP Members, Military Surplus Items and the TSA

[a2capt]

Of the members of the public we probably have our fair share of stories from the terminal to tell. With all this TSA hysteria going on it might be prudent to examine those items we have before they go to the airport again. Even in the baggage hold, the stuff still gets randomly selected and swabbed for "residue".

What kind of residue ... well, the kinds of things that many cadets in particular, will go after from G.I. Joe's or your local variety of such a store .. that might have very well been turned in by someone who "just came back" and traded it for something else.

We had a cadet traveling to an event have an issue with a duffel bag testing blatantly positive on the swab test some years back. The item in question had been acquired just a few days prior from a store outside the base.

Nothing became of it, once it was made fairly evident that the owner was part of a contingent of cadets traveling, that two and two were put together and the origins of the bag were pointed out. It went onboard, and everyone got there on time.

..and then of course there are stories of Color Guard travel They were not allowed to bring their trophy home from NCC once, even pre-disassembled, distributed in the team's various carry on's. Looking at the thing it was fairly obvious that it was an award, with an inscription dated just the day before. Arrangements had to be made to find a box, stuffing/padding/newspapers/etc.  They had "concerns" that the tubes and rods could be assembled in another configuration and.. well, yeah.

Keep this stuff in mind when that unit that hosts your meeting place on a base gives out ammo crates, cans, etc.

On a flight shortly after Sept. 11th, I discovered a carbon dagger in my computer carry on. I wondered way back where that thing was, it even survived a beat-down dumping to get "everything" out. I figured it was left in a data center somewhere and had forgotten about it. I had bought a couple of them at the county fair after seeing the usual display of it being hammered into a 2 by 4. The other was in the Camel-Bak, where it got transferred to when I joined CAP.  I figured they'd be good for stubborn wire bundles, stickers, zip ties, boxes taped shut with an entire roll at auctions, etc. You'd be surprised how often an implement comes in handy when dealing with racks, wires and cable bundles. Turned out it was neatly crammed into a crevice and stayed happily there. I'm sure that thing would have come out in better visibility with what they use now, vs. then.

[HGjunkie]

I'm just glad I didn't have to go through one of those scanners when I was travelling to and from HGA. but I guess me wearing my blues helped a little...

However the guy at the scanner belt when I was coming back from HGA did freak out because I was carrying my 2x4 rifle (covered in duct tape of course).

[Eclipse]

Coming out of Denver to ORD this week I was taken aback at how friendly and engaging TSA was - I suspect it may be an effort to
quel some of the boycott nonsense, but regardless, TSA officers are just people doing a job like anyone else.

Double-check what is in your bag and on your person (which should be nothing), take it seriously and don't act like an idiot and you will be fine.  If something looks suspicious, be honest and open and move on with your life.

Here's a hint:  only about 20% will be scanned, assuming the airport even has scanners, and they could care less what you look like under your clothes.   You will only get a pat-down if you refuse the scanner or request one.

Rent "Up In The Air" and pay attention to how George Clooney does it.
A hint of my own - those plastic tac belts that come with the lightweight tactical pants from BDU.com go right through the metal detector - I actually got a complement from one of the attendants on wearing it.

I have flown at least 14 times since July and have been scanned a total of once...

...I understand the machine was fixed the next day and the officer will be out of therepy in time for Thanksgiving.   

[JoeTomasone]

I've only had 2 incidents with airport security:


1.  Just after 9/11, flying back from Chicago, suddenly my screwdriver (the kind with the tiny, removable tips), my cat5 computer cable, and my AA batteries were declared material non grata - apparently they were determined to be components with which I could construct an explosive device.   Fortunately, I was able to put them in a checked bag and make it back in time for my flight, but not before an exasperating conversation with both the security folks and one of Chicago's finest about the absurdity of it all.   

2. My laptop bag tested positive for explosive residue for some reason.  Despite minor panic over what might happen next (body cavity search?  Decapitation?), it was a very professional experience.   After a search of my bag, they determined that it was likely just leftover residue from the skin cream I had put on my elbow that morning.

Over literally hundreds of flights over the past decade, that's not a bad track record.

[jimmydeanno]

Just out of curiosity, so what if there is residue?  Residue doesn't mean that you're carrying something on, or in your bag.  What if you carry your weapons home from the range in that same bag? 

Are they going to start swabbing cash to check for drug residue and accuse you of being a drug dealer/user next?

[EMT-83]

Sounds like a Jeff Dunham moment...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgcrEhhiEhA

[manfredvonrichthofen]

I had an issue when I was in the Army. I used to carry HE in my pack in Iraq (I still use this pack). I went to the airport many times while I was in the Army, for the first two flights I wore civilian clothes and got my pack swabbed. Both times they pulled me to the side and checked through my baggage, even pulling my check bag and searching it as well. I missed both flights and after 3hours the first and 5 the second time I had to complain until I was blue and they finally put me on the next flight at no additional cost, in my opinion they should have refunded my fare and still let me fly. I had a military ID and leave papers(1st time) (2nd time orders) yet they still gave me massive issues. After that I always traveled in uniform if I had to go to the airport. I never got pulled out again despite my bag being swabbed almost every time. They would literally swab my bag shrug their shoulders and mumble meh oh well and let me through. My suggestion, wear blues to fly, it just makes it easier.

[JoeTomasone]

Just out of curiosity, so what if there is residue?  Residue doesn't mean that you're carrying something on, or in your bag.  What if you carry your weapons home from the range in that same bag? 

Are they going to start swabbing cash to check for drug residue and accuse you of being a drug dealer/user next?

Well, as I understand it, if you've been handling explosives recently, you might just be some sort of risk that should be checked out.

Either that, or you do HE in Iraq. 

[JC004]

I'm not sure if I entirely understand the residue thing.  Orlando swabbed my handgun once.  I would have thought that it would have been expected/acceptable for it to have a residue?  I don't know what they would have done because it was new and didn't have any residue yet.

[davidsinn]

I'm doomed next time I fly. I'm a farmboy. I'm sure to have nitrogen on my clothing.

[JC004]

I'm doomed next time I fly. I'm a farmboy. I'm sure to have nitrogen on my clothing.

I've wondered about that - especially with those things that are like walk-through mags but for chemical detection rather than metal.

[davidsinn]

I'm doomed next time I fly. I'm a farmboy. I'm sure to have nitrogen on my clothing.

I've wondered about that - especially with those things that are like walk-through mags but for chemical detection rather than metal.

My group CC is TSA and he played with one of the detectors in the recent past. Basically if they applied a nitrate based fertilizer in the past week and I brush anything that contacted it then I will set the machine off. Since I normally hand apply Am. Nitrate to my wife's flowers I will have a long and interesting discussion with the JBT fine members of the TSA should I fly commercial anytime within a week of the handling it.

[bosshawk]

You should see what two artificial knees does to the metal detector.  On the other hand, the full body scan doesn't react to anything.

[jimmydeanno]

You should see what two artificial knees does to the metal detector.  On the other hand, the full body scan doesn't react to anything.

Odd that they set it off.  I have about three pounds of stainless steel attached to my spine and it doesn't set anything off...

[Al Sayre]

Most metal detectors are a misnomer.  They detect ferrous and other magnetic/semi-magnetic metals such as iron, steel, copper, brass (an alloy of copper), nickle etc.  They will usually not pick up aluminium, stainless steel, titanium, etc unless it's a really large quantity.

[bosshawk]

The surgeon who did my knees says that they are made of stainless steel and plastic.  They certainly do set off the metal detectors and the wands that the officers use to give me the up close and personal treatment.  I fly the airlines so seldom that it really isn't an issue: maybe once or twice a year.  Now, if I had to do this every time that I fly my own Bonanza, I might find it a bit tiring.

[NIN]

Years ago, pre 9/11, I traveled to Chicago on business with my skydiving rig.  While in Chicago, the government implemented the mass-spectrometer scanning system at O'Hare, and on the way back thru, they were highly interested in the laptop bag I was traveling with.

Never mind the sport parachute rig in the old AF kit bag that contained a microprocessor controlled, battery powered device that pyrotechnically activated the reserve pilot chute at a pre-set altitude.  I've seen the X-Ray of this device: it doesn't look like, say, an electric razor or your Walkman.. no, no, it looks a lot different.

But in any event, they swabbed the daylights out of my laptop bag (to a nice negative) and were utterly uninterested in the sport rig.

I wonder if they would have gotten something there?

[a2capt]

Heh.. now... if you had a large bag of money, they might have been interested.

[spacecommand]

Actually due to some instances where people were carrying large amounts of money in their bags and TSA going beyond their authority, TSA revised some of their screening procedures after being sued.

The new rules, issued in September and October of last year, tell officers "screening may not be conducted to detect evidence of crimes unrelated to transportation security" and that large amounts of cash don't qualify as suspicious for purposes of safety.  "Traveling with large amounts of currency is not illegal," the T.S.A. added in an internal directive on Oct. 29.

[desertengineer1]

Just finishing my 5th AOR deployment, I've become accustomed to this, as well as many of our military travelers.

Just because something in your bag screens positive doesn't mean the swat team is coming out 

I've swabbed positive several times coming out of pre-deployment training, Afghanistan or Iraq due to the amount of nitrils on everything.  NH2 and NH3 in dust is one of the components it uses to detect explosives - common when you fire rifles and are around artillery  (Those of you who commonly fire .223 know the ammonia odor).

They will pull you to the side and go through the standard questions, as well as go through all your carry on baggage.  If you check out OK, it only takes a few minutes.  If you cop an attitude, the trouble will ensue.

In my (and others in our group) case, the "Just came back from being around a lot of active weapons and artillery" sufficed - along with the usual extra ID, orders, and nothing problematic on my self or in the bags. 

And yes, with all that tactical travel, I've occasionally left things in bags.  Sometimes they miss it, but most of the time they catch it and it goes in the little box.  Been lucky to not have anything expensive...  so far..