You may recall the incident a few months ago when the TSA harassed a man for carrying $4700 in cash. When questioned, the passenger, Steve Bierfeldt, refused to acknowledge the TSA’s authority to question his transportation of any sum of cash, and offered to explain the money if the agents would name the law which authorized them to question him. And he secretly taped the whole interrogation with his phone.

The ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union) took up Bierfeldt’s cause and sued the agency. The TSA has subsequently changed its rules, informing its agents that “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.” In light of the policy changes, the ACLU dropped its suit.

Until very recently, the TSA defended the purpose of its interrogation of Bierfeldt (if not the unprofessional conduct of the interrogation.) In April, Francine Kerner, the TSA’s chief counsel reiterated the notion that cash is effectively probably cause for further prying. On the TSA blog, she wrote: “When presented with a passenger carrying a large sum of money through the screening checkpoint, the TSA officer will frequently engage in dialog with the passenger to determine whether a referral to law-enforcement authorities is warranted.”

The change in policy is welcome. But TSA refuses to publish the actual policy.

TSA spokeswoman Lauren Gaches said the new “internal directives” are meant to ensure their screeners are consistent. She acknowledged the policy on large sums of cash had changed, but wouldn’t provide a copy of either document. She said the directives would not be released unless a Freedom Of Information Act request was submitted by the Washington Times [the newspaper that published the change in policy following the ACLU's press release.]

I can understand that the agency may not want to release the protocols that its agents use for determining likely or unlikely threats. Some might perceive public knowledge of these guidelines as a roadmap for the bad guys to avoid a search. But in a democracy, people have a right to know what constitutes a reasonable search.

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Update: I’ve contacted Stephen Dinan, the author of the Washington Times article, to see if a Freedom of Information Act request is underway. If not, I will submit one myself.

Update 2: Thanks to Stephen Dinan for pointing me toward this link (PDF) on the ACLU website. It contains one of two policy clarifications by TSA, dating to September 2009. Start on page 14. At first read, it’s disheartening, because there is enormous wiggle room for TSOs to engage in searches unrelated to airport or travel security. For example:

As a general matter, there should be no reason to ask questions of the passenger about security, although there may be times when questions are warranted by security needs.

That’s a big loophole. It’s still not clear to me how cash can be a “threat item,” to use TSA terminology. What are you going to do, throw wads of cash at fellow passengers, like a ninja with Chinese stars?

Dinan also noted that his paper has indeed filed the FOIA request for the second set of TSA directives from October 2009. I’ll look forward to the update.

Downgraded: TSA
Upgraded: Airports with independence
Near Glacier National Park, in Kalispell, Montana, Glacier Park International Airport is hoping to boot the TSA off its property and replace the government security agency with private contractors. What?? I had no idea this was possible, but sure enough: Under the Screening Partnership Program, an airport can apply to reprivatize security, generally if TSA isn’t meeting the airport’s needs. The issue for Glacier was staffing: The TSA calculated staffing levels based on October traffic levels — when August is the peak travel time for the area. About 15 airports, including several in Montana, have opted out of the TSA’s domain.

Upgraded: Efforts to keep convention business. ANY convention business
Hotels need business. So, is there any problem with hosting a convention of swingers as a Holiday Inn in upstate New York did? The annual spouse-swapping event, “Entice the Falls” (link not entirely safe for work), featured some exciting events like “Flogging 101″ and a (canceled) body painting party. But how many bonus points do you earn for a weekend of debauchery?

Downgraded: Chrysler at the rental counter
The Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group is slashing its purchases of Chrysler vehicles. Their fleet is currently 76% Chrysler, but Ford will nearly tie Chrysler for new purchases (34 and 30%, respectively).

Upgraded: Luxury in Mecca
Downgraded: Raffles Hotels’ management’s common sense
Islamic pilgrims to Mecca who aren’t feeling particularly pious, but who are looking to live large, may be pleased to hear that Singapore’s Raffles Hotels are planning an enormous luxury hotel that will cast a shadow on the Muslim world’s holiest site. But what on earth is the hotel chain thinking? I’m sure some will find the uber-luxurious hotel an affront to the religious meaning of the site; are they painting a giant target on all the hotels in the Raffles brand?

Upgraded: Recliners!
The dip in travel has been a boon for furniture makers. What? Yes, according to the industry, sales of reclining chairs are up, as Americans travel less, stay home more, and look for greater comfort in their living room.

Upgraded: Spotlights on mileage running
I’ve been known to go on a mileage run or two (though not for a few years now) in order to bump up my elite-qualifying miles to the next tier, but I’m nowhere near the big leagues that these guys play in. Check out this 20-minute documentary on mileage runners, and the OCD spirit that drives them to collect miles and points with a singleminded focus:

Joe Sharkey reminds us that the Secure Flight program requires travelers to, from, or within the United States to ensure that the spelling of their name on their passport or government-issued identification must match precisely the spelling of their name on their boarding passes.

So if you use your driver’s license and it says John T. Smith, your ticket must also say John T. Smith — not John Thomas Smith, not Jack Smith, or any other name variant.

Let’s put aside for a moment the counterargument that names and identity do not, in and of themselves, create a security risk for anyone. Unless you start flicking driver’s licenses at passengers like Chinese stars…

Yes, in case you forgot, the terrorists won. Big time. But I digress.

The reality of travel in this great land is that your ID has to match your boarding pass. And you’ll have to give them your gender and date of birth, too, to distinguish you from similarly-named people who might be on a no-fly list.

And that means you’ll want (well, need) to update your customer profiles with the companies with whom you book flights.

Though the program is already implemented, the timeline for mandating 100% compliance isn’t clear:

TSA has built some flexibility into the processes regarding passenger name accuracy. For the near future, small differences between the passenger’s ID and the passenger’s reservation information, such as the use of a middle initial instead of a full middle name or no middle name/initial at all, should not cause a problem for the passenger. Over time, passengers should strive to obtain consistency between the name on their ID and their travel information.

The ease of actually changing your profile varies by company. American Airlines makes it easy to add/change your middle name/initial for Secure Flight compliance on their website. United requires that you e-mail them. Orbitz reprimands me to “re-enter a unique name and date of birth for each traveler,” but their site doesn’t actually include a field to actually enter a date of birth anywhere.

And don’t forget that your passport may not list your name the same way as your driver’s license or other government-issued ID. Be sure the ticket matches the identification you actually carry for a given trip.

I’ve made the changes with some, but not all, of the companies I book with, whether airlines or agencies. If I’ve been able to do it online, I’ve done it. Luckily, my passport and driver’s license both list my full name, including my complete middle name

So, have you updated your profiles? Or have you considered having an ID reissued to make sure it’s consistent with other identification? Hit the comments!

Full credit to Randall Munroe at xkcd.com.

Upgraded: Bad ideas made real
Remember the proposal for sideways seating on commercial airlines? DesignQ, the company that proposed the scheme, is moving toward testing — including crash simulations — by the end of 2009. I am honestly surprised the design is being pursued this aggressively. We’ll see how those tests go. Here’s a reminder of what the designers have in mind:

Downgraded: Hilton hotels in Venezuela
Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez has nationalized another Hilton-managed property, this one on Margarita Island. It looks like the 154 timeshare owners are out of luck. And yet, the hotel is still in the Hilton system, and maintains the Hilton branding. Huh?!

Downgraded: Hotel reviews… for libel
TripAdvisor contributors, take note: If you’re writing a scathing review of a small Australian hotel or inn, you may find yourself the defendant in a libel suit. Companies with fewer than 10 employees are legally less restricted in suing for libel than larger firms, apparently. But the best defense for libel remains the truth.

Downgraded: USA Today
USA Today’s circulation took a 17% hit, and Gannett’s management placed the blame on a decline in travel. Those papers that show up in front of the hotel door sure do add up!

Downgraded: Pilots’ holsters
Remember the pilot who discharged his pistol in the cockpit and shot a hole through the fuselage, in-flight? He’s been permitted to fly again, 18 months after being fired by US Airways for the incident. In his defense, “the Department of Homeland Security faulted the design of holsters used by pilots who carry their weapons on board planes. The department’s inspector general said the design increased the chance of accidental discharge when pilots inserted their guns in the holsters.” But why a pilot needs a holstered sidearm — behind a locked cockpit door — in the first place isn’t clear to me. The pilot is no longer allowed to carry a weapon aboard.

Upgraded: Peep shows for UK airport security
The US isn’t the only country installing full-body through-the-clothes scanners at airports. The UK is doing so as well. Yes, the systems are designed to show hidden weapons. But “the full body scans will also show up breast enlargements, body piercings and a clear black-and-white outline of passengers’ genitals.” Black-and-white nude silhouettes are already visible to security personnel at Manchester Airport. Passengers have the right opt out of that screen and choose a more traditional scan instead.

Downgraded: Glib descriptions of getting upgrades
Upgraded: Smackdowns
Gary Leff and I got the same e-mail from the folks at TripBase, promoting a post on their blog describing how to “almost always” get upgrades. The post is yet another piece of upgrade disinformation, perpetuating mythologies that may have once held sway but no longer mean anything in today’s airline environment. Gary has a fantastic point-by-point takedown of the piece.

It didn’t make it into Gadling’s top-ten list of items not to attempt to carry through a TSA checkpoint, but Matt Daimler, founder of the invaluable SeatGuru.com, sent in this photo he snapped at LaGuardia Airport security:

That’s right, don’t bring a snowglobe in your carry-on this holiday season. Bah humbug and all that.

And remember, when TSA collects all those dangerous bottles of spring water, hair gel, and mouthwash — and snowglobes — they just throw it all into a big barrel that’s disposed of as trash. It’s not treated as a dangerous stew of explosives, to be handled with the kidgloves of a well-trained bomb squad. Because it’s not.

It’s been a tough few weeks, but U:TB is back on the beat. Not tanned, rested, or particularly ready, alas. But back.

Upgraded: Snakes in a car
A Florida woman got in her Enterprise rental car, only to find a 3 1/2 foot long red rat snake on the dashboard. Will “snake availability waivers” be the next add-on fee? And was it a Dodge Viper?

Upgraded: Convictions of liquid bombers
Prosecutors in the UK convicted three men of conspiracy to murder, as part of the 2006 liquid-explosives threat. Prosecutors want to re-try three of the men, for whom the jury could not reach a verdict. In connection with the trial, the BBC released a video ostensibly showing a liquid bomb of the type planned by the convicts.

Upgraded: Newcastle airport
UK officials are testing liquid-explosives scanners at Newcastle airport, using a device that scans liquid containers to judge whether their contents are a potential bomb ingredient or a harmless beverage, facial cream, or toothpaste. Could the 3-ounce liquid limit be up for review?… stay tuned.

Upgraded: Singapore’s A380
Global travel is in a slump. But if you’re expecting an empty seat in coach on board a Singapore Airbus A380, guess again. People still pack the plane. Full planes don’t mean a fat bottom line, though. The airline isn’t getting top dollar per ticket, even if the public seems to like the plane.

Upgraded: Hotel deals
The average rate for hotel rooms has dropped 17% in the first half of 2009 alone, making the average room the cheapest its been in five years. Bucking the trend: rates in Caribbean, down only 2% on average. (I’m sure there’s still a lot of variation between islands.)

Downgraded: Block 37
For years, “block 37″ in the center of the Chicago Loop (the block is bounded by Randolph, State, Washington, and Dearborn) stood vacant. It’s a construction site now, with plans for a central transit hub underground. And above ground, a Loews Hotel was planned, with rights sold to the company for $1. But the hotel chain can’t (or won’t) get financing for this prime downtown location, so yet another hotel project is up in the air.

Customers of Preferred Traveler, an authorized participant in Homeland Security’s Registered Traveler program, started worrying about their local Registered Traveler program when Clear folded last month. The worries were justified. Another one has bitten the dust after all.

Preferred Traveler, operated by Vigilant Solutions, has dismantled their security line. Reader “Mooner” sends in a link from their site with photographic evidence from Friday, July 17, showing the carting-off of the secure lane equipment at 4:21 pm.

Someone needs to let Vigilant know that their website is still showing that they’re in business… the site, which doesn’t seem to have been updated for a month, reads:

As many of you are aware, Clear put out a statement stating “At 11:00 p.m. PST on June 22, 2009, Clear will cease operations. Clear’s parent company, Verified Identity Pass, Inc. has been unable to negotiate an agreement with its senior creditor to continue operations.”

Be assured, that while we are interoperable with all Clear lanes, we are not Clear and will continue to operate on a limited basis. We are working on gathering information and are having discussions with other industry members and will provide you information as we receive it.

Gives new meaning to “limited basis” …

The company was operating at two airports: Jacksonville and Louisville. Their partnership with Clear gave them a broader reach of more than 20 airports, but after Clear went belly-up, that breadth disappeared. With only two airports in the network, I’m sure many questioned the value they were getting for the $175 annual fee.

As before, when Clear went under, there are questions about refunds, and questions about the security of users’ private data. To participate in a registered traveler program, passengers needed to permit a detailed background check, which was stored by a private company contracted with the federal government. Registered Traveler was a poorly planned concept from the get-go. All for a shorter line. And now…?

(Thanks, Mooner!)

UPDATE: Via e-mail Joe Brancatelli points out that the FLO Corporation, which managed a similar program in Reno, has also closed. (Thanks, Joe!)

A Q&A from the TSA regarding the Registered Traveler program is found here.

Clear, the company that built a business around a shorter line for access to TSA security lines, has gone under. If you’ve paid for a Clear membership, your card will be worthless before the night is out.

The Clear website has a sad announcement:

Clear Lanes Are No Longer Available.

At 11:00 p.m. PST on June 22, 2009, Clear will cease operations. Clear’s parent company, Verified Identity Pass, Inc. has been unable to negotiate an agreement with its senior creditor to continue operations.

As longtime readers may recall, I never found the concept of Clear compelling. Travelers who flew enough to benefit the most from a shorter line at security would likely be elite members of their frequent flyer program, which, in turn, would grant them access to shorter lines at major airports. Smaller airports have fewer lines to begin with, making Clear unnecessary for anyone at those sites.

It was a concept without a core customer base. The fact that they recently doubled their annual fee wasn’t much help either. And apparently their credit line has run out. R.I.P., Clear.

Related:
- Do airlines’ most frequent flyers deserve shorter security lines?
- Your shoes remain a threat to security
- Would you pay a fee to reserve a time to pass through airport security?

Downgraded: Michigan’s roads
Several counties in Michigan are opting to grind deteriorated paved roads into gravel roads rather than re-pave them. The money’s just not there. That’s progress!

Downgraded: U.S. treatment of international visitors
Because international travelers to the United States, who are already subjected to fingerprinting, photographing, and prying questions galore, apparently haven’t been treated sufficiently like criminals… Homeland Security is now launching a pilot test of fingerprinting visitors as they leave the country as well. Be treated like a criminal when you come in, be treated like a criminal when you leave. Just lovely. Foreigners departing from Atlanta or Detroit will have the pleasure.

Upgraded: Free wi-fi on Virgin America June 24
Google and Virgin America are teaming up to offer a day of free inflight wi-fi, online games, and other hijinx.

Downgraded: Extended Stay Hotels … and the Federal Reserve
Extended Stay Hotels, the parent of Extended Stay America, Crossland Studios, and Homestead Studio Suites, filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy. And who’s left holding the bag? The Federal Reserve!

Downgraded: United Mileage Plus
United Mileage Plus has been on a downward trajectory for some time, but Gary Leff pinpoints the absurdity of United’s blocking of frequent flyer tickets on partner airlines. The airline doesn’t want to make those tickets available because it costs them money when you use your miles on partners. But other Star Alliance airlines don’t block partners like this. It’s a United-specific problem, and it’s getting absurd. Gary writes: “In the last two days I’ve been told ‘Lufthansa doesn’t fly to Frankfurt’ and (looking for flights departing Hong Kong) ‘Thai Airways doesn’t fly to Bangkok that day.’” It’s insulting.

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