Stowaway tricks security checks on the flight from New York to Paris

Stowaway tricks security checks on the flight from New York to Paris

The largest terminal of John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, on one of the most busy travel days of the year, there were surprising security failures that made it possible for a passenger that was not booked, to climb an airplane to Paris . An aviation expert described this incident as a "wake -up call" for the aviation industry.

security gaps in the airport system

"It is a big problem that exposes our vulnerabilities of the world," said Mary Schiavo, a CNN air drive expert and former Inspector General of the U.S. Transport Ministry. She commented on the incident in which a 57-year-old woman, who was identified by an airport employee in Paris as a Russian national, was not in the possession of a boarding pass. The woman was finally identified as Svetlana Dali.

How the Stowaway surrounded the security check

Although the woman did not have a valid ticket, she managed to go through a security check on Tuesday before Thanksgiving and to avoid the identity check and boarding stations to get on board a Delta Air Line aircraft. Originally, she went through control for hand luggage, where the TSA found that it carried two water bottles. She was finally arrested when landing in France.

a lack of security awareness?

"Maybe this was an incredible happiness that happened to us because the system flashes red," said Schiavo in an interview. The TSA is aware of the threats, and both the TSA and Delta Air Lines have failed in this case. "If people take this seriously, this could be the wake -up call that we need to ensure the safety of passengers and the people through whose heads we fly."

surveillance cameras and security gaps

A spokesman for the TSA informed CNN that the woman first passed a security switch of the terminal employee who was responsible for the security area of the flight crews. At this point she skipped the station where her ID and boarding pass would have been checked, and then joined the queue for regular security control.

a chaos in security control

The investigators suspect that the huge crowds at the airport were a co -reason for this incident during the holiday weekend. According to TSA data, almost 2.7 million passengers were checked this Tuesday before Thanksgiving. Video recordings of the security cameras show that the woman first mingled with the flight crew and later placed on the gate in the middle of a family that wanted to travel together.

missing individual review

"This is not an excuse," said Schiavo. "It is required that every passenger is treated as a potential security threat. The motto of the TSA is: 'Every passenger, every time' - groups should not be treated differently than individuals." Schiavo emphasized that all airport checkpoints are monitored by cameras and the Stowaway is definitely on the video how to deal with the TSA controls.

reactions to the incident

The passengers learned during the landing process that there was a Stowaway on board the Delta flight after Charles de Gaulle, and the pilot asked them to keep their places while French police officers arrived to clarify a "serious security matter", reported Rob Jackson, a passenger of the flight.

technological solutions to improve security

The TSA is currently carrying out its own investigation of the incident. The authority pointed out that electronic access gate technologies, known as an e-gates that could be integrated into the facial recognition systems of the TSA, could help prevent such incidents, although this would require a greater investment by the federal government.

A look into the future of airport security

TSA administrator David P. Pekoske spoke at a summit of the American Association of Airport Executives about the need for e-gates to ensure that all passengers are checked. "We take this matter very seriously," he said of the passengers who deal with the identity check. "This is a systemic problem and a solution could be the installation of e-gates."

conclusion

The incident underlines the safety due in the aviation industry. Schiavo pointed out that it is important that the public is aware of the existing weaknesses. "The world now knows that our security, similar to 9/11, is extremely permeable," she emphasized. "If she had been a terrorist, it would have been successful, and nobody would have known who she was."