[lmo913]

Below is the letter I sent to Delta about my recent experience:
I experienced a rather disturbing chain of events on my flight from
White Plains, NY to a connecting flight in Atlanta. While waiting on
the tarmac to board our plane via a ramp, a rental car driver threw what
appeared to be a case of sunglasses over the barbed wire fence to one of
the passengers. While a number of employees noticed and other
passengers notified the flight attendants, the recipient was allowed to
board the aircraft with materials that were not checked through
security. Eventually, TSA became involved asking the passengers in the
rows near that passenger to exit for re-screening with their carry-ons.
TSA than searched the immediate vicinity of the plane. This whole
process led to the plane being delayed two hours, causing me to miss my
connection. I was forced to stay the night in Atlanta and pay for a
hotel room. While I understand that security delays are certainly not
Delta's responsibility, I believe that Delta made a number of poor
choices that may have led to the delay, and certainly made me feel less
secure. Why was a passenger known to have received materials that did
not go through security allowed on board in the first place? After
being on board, such materials could be found anywhere. Asking those in
rows near that person to exit for re-screening does not seem to offer
much security because we did not board according to row or even section.
Those people standing next to the offender in line were actually all
over the plane. Once on the plane, a dangerous item could be anywhere,
not just in the rows around that person's seat. Once that passenger was
allowed on the plane during the regular boarding process, the entire
plane became a security risk. I feel Delta made some serious errors in
judgment, which resulted both in an unnecessarily long delay and serious
safety concerns.

[PHXFlyer]

How is any of this Delta's Issue? The TSA, once summoned to the aircraft, made all of the decisions of where to search, who to re-screen, etc. Delta's (actually Delta Connection/Atlantic Southeast at White Plains) employees did the proper thing by notifying the TSA. Once they step in, it's their matter to deal with. Now ultimately the decision to fly the aircraft is the captain's and apparently the measures TSA took were satisfactory to him or her.

Additionally if you didn't feel that the search was thorough enough or that something could have been overlooked why did you board the plane and fly to Atlanta? Your "complaint" would have been valid had you decided to voluntarily be re-booked on a later flight but you flew on the same plane obviously without any concern for your own safety.

[lmo913]

I boarded the flight first, as the incident occurred behind me in line. I was not under the impression that Delta agents would let those people on the flight. Delta let them on the flight before TSA arrived. Delta made that choice, and then TSA got involved.

[Butch Cassidy Slept Here]

If any Delta staff saw that toss then, technically yes, they should have called either the TSA or the airport police (please, no heart attacks among my detractors!) However I'll assume, as always, the Delta staff are under pressure to get the flight out on time. Frankly, if I were in their (the Delta staff) position I could almost see myself doing the same thing, and ignoring that toss. From what little I know of explosives it's almost impossible to put anything into sunglasses which, if exploded, could cause damage to an aircraft.

As to the TSA actions: I don't think they had any choice in how they reacted. Once notified, they were forced to respond and follow a set protocol.

Even with this incident, all things being equal, I'd STILL choose a "secondary" airport over a major.

[PHXFlyer]

Perhaps the OP should be writing to Westchester County as well to complain that the ramp is not sufficiently fenced off from the adjacent roadway allowing items to be tossed over in the first place.

I would also find out which rental car agency that employee worked for and write to that company. I know the employee felt they were dong the passenger a favor by returning the sunglasses left in the car but didn't think about the consequences of his or her actions. They should have been turned over to ASA to be delivered to the passenger after being properly screened.

[lmo913]

I did write to TSA. Initially, I wrote to Delta in large part because I thought they should be aware of that mistake. While I appreciate that they want to avoid a delay, couldn't the delay be avoided by refusing boarding to those people until TSA arrives?

While sunglasses likely don't hold anything, the case they were in could. I don't believe that we were really in danger, but procedures that were followed, from Delta letting them on the plane to the TSA search just seemed entirely illogical. In the end, the whole process led to a two-hour delay, with most people arriving too late to make their connections.

My frustration stems, in large part, from the unsatisfactory response that I received from Delta. Rather than some explanation or apology, I received the following response:

I am truly sorry for the frustration you experienced when your travel
was negatively impacted due to the delay of our flight for
weather-related conditions. Feedback like yours will help us to improve
our overall customer experience. Be assured your comments will be
shared with our Airport Customer Service leadership team for internal
follow up.

We appreciate your comments regarding the unsatisfactory customer
service you encountered. After reading your remarks, I certainly
understand why you wanted to bring this matter to our attention. I am
truly sorry you did not receive the service you expected and should have
received, as we expect our employees to be helpful and professional at
all times. Please know I will be sharing your comments with our Airport
Customer Service leadership team for internal follow up.

They clearly never even bothered to read my letter, and couldn't care less that they technically put people in danger.

[jimworcs]

PHX.. I think you are being very harsh on this poster. The complaint is a legitimate one, and security is not just an issue for the TSA but for all airport employees. In this scenario, I think the passenger was right to state that Delta should have prevented this passenger from boarding. The method used by the TSA to resolve the problem would be forbidden in Europe. One a person who is the subject of any security concern has boarding the whole plane has to be evacuated and searched. You cannot just search the adjacent rows. This procedure is also followed if a passenger requests to disembark after the door is closed, even if this is for health or other reasons.

For an individual to stand up and express security concerns in this situation is highly intimidating. Especially with the TSA and DeltaNazi's. You under-estimate how much courage it takes for someone to stand out in this situation. Also, in the stress of a situation such as this, it may only be on reflection that you have realised the full implications of what took place.

I think this OP is to be commended for writing to Delta (and copying it to the TSA) to highlight what was genuinely a security concern. Delta's response tells you all you need to know about this airline and its contempt for customers. They clearly don't even read the letters.

[PHXFlyer]

My experience with boarding regional jets when there is no jetway is that the gate agent scans the boarding passes and the passengers walk single file from the door to the terminal to the aircraft. Tere are usually markings on the tarmac or a roped-off lane leading to the aircraft door. The flight attendant is usually inside the aircraft at the top of the stairs. It's quite possible that the FA and ramp workers did not witness "the toss" and were only aware of the situation after it was reported by another passenger and after the recipient of "the toss" had boarded.

I still maintain that if the OP was so concerned about safety he should have exited the aircraft and demanded to be rebooked the following day especially since he knew he would miss his connecting flight in Atlanta anyway.

[lmo913]

"The flight attendant is usually inside the aircraft at the top of the stairs. It's quite possible that the FA and ramp workers did not witness "the toss" and were only aware of the situation after it was reported by another passenger and after the recipient of "the toss" had boarded."

Maybe I should be more clear. They knew. Airport workers spoke to the offenders, a Delta employee was right there, and people just behind me told the flight attendant as we boarded. There were many Delta employees around because there were a number of passengers in wheelchairs that were going up the ramp to the airplane.

"I still maintain that if the OP was so concerned about safety he should have exited the aircraft and demanded to be rebooked the following day especially since he knew he would miss his connecting flight in Atlanta anyway."

There was no way to know that I would miss my connection. There was no way to know that the process would take two hours while we waited for those people to be allowed to board again.

We were not permitted to stand-up during the two-hour delay, much less leave the plane. The flight attendants were very clear we were not to move. Somehow, that would have constituted a security threat.

At any rate, I think your mistake is assuming that Delta is not at all responsible for securing their planes. Even if I could have gotten off the plane, which I highly doubt, it does not mitigate Delta's responsibility. They were aware of the situation and allowed the people to board anyway.

[PHXFlyer]

Originally Posted by lmo913

Maybe I should be more clear. They knew. Airport workers spoke to the offenders, a Delta employee was right there, and people just behind me told the flight attendant as we boarded. There were many Delta employees around because there were a number of passengers in wheelchairs that were going up the ramp to the airplane.

I stand corrected and apologize for the assumption. Thank you for clearing those details up.

Originally Posted by lmo913

There was no way to know that I would miss my connection. There was no way to know that the process would take two hours while we waited for those people to be allowed to board again.

We were not permitted to stand-up during the two-hour delay, much less leave the plane. The flight attendants were very clear we were not to move. Somehow, that would have constituted a security threat.

At any rate, I think your mistake is assuming that Delta is not at all responsible for securing their planes. Even if I could have gotten off the plane, which I highly doubt, it does not mitigate Delta's responsibility. They were aware of the situation and allowed the people to board anyway.

Another wrong assumption on my part. I had no idea they kept you on the plane while they did this search. However after the search was over you could, and probably should, have exited the plane. If you truly believed that your safety was seriously compromised by the actions, or inaction, of the TSA and/or Delta Connection employees you wouldn't have been on that plane.

Please don't take it personally but I was simply pointing out that your complaint has little merit because despite the security breach and your opinion that the proper precautions weren't taken you still flew on that aircraft.

[lmo913]

You are right that I did not feel unsafe, as I mentioned early. It was a family traveling with two small children. I firmly believe that the whole thing was exactly as it appeared. But next time it might not be. Just because I was willing to fly on the plane (and again, given that we were on the tarmac and they closed the doors immediately without informing us what was going on, I seriously doubt I could exit the plane without being arrested) does not mean that I can't object to the procedures, particularly when my complaint is suggesting that this was a mishandling that airlines and TSA should learn from.

[Butch Cassidy Slept Here]

However after the search was over you could, and probably should, have exited the plane.

I've always assumed that if one took this option, they run the risk of forfeiting the value of their ticket for that flight. What is to prevent the gate agent from, in effect, saying "S***w you. Safety, or no safety, I've got your boarding pass. As far as I'm concerned, you left on that flight."

One post (now, about 6 months old) on here describes a case where the customer was threatened with arrest (I'm not making this up) if she left the aircraft. The woman did anyway, and it appears she was NOT arrested. However, in this case, would the gate agent be justified in telling the woman she forfeited the value of her ticket because she left the aircraft against the orders of a crew member?

In short, it comes to recovering the value of your ticket, are there "correct" reasons for leaving the aircraft, and "INcorrect" reasons?

[Jetliner]

You shouldn't loose the value of the ticket, but depending on what happened, they could be justified in charging the change fee/fare increase, but this would not be such a case.

Originally Posted by lmo913

While I appreciate that they want to avoid a delay, couldn't the delay be avoided by refusing boarding to those people until TSA arrives?

No. The issue happened on the ramp, and the way to the aircraft. They can't just let everyone stand there until the TSA arrives, and they can't let you back on to the concourse where it could affect other flights. They had to keep the breach contained.

Originally Posted by lmo913

but procedures that were followed, from Delta letting them on the plane to the TSA search just seemed entirely illogical.

Delta more than likely was not aware of the case being tossed over the fence in time to keep it from happening. As for the TSA, I won't go into detail, but I will say that from what you have described, they followed the written procedure.

I can tell you that two things WILL come from this though. First TSA will make Delta watch the fence more closely. I wouldn't be surprised if Delta now has to station someone near the fence, and the airport will probably put in a higher fence.

Secondly I guarantee you that some rental car agent is facing a huge fine, and maybe out of a job.