Well I was in line to get on an OMNI air flight in Honolulu. The security person waved at the person taking the boarding passes that she wanted the man in front of me. He sort of pretended not to hear, grabbed his pass and went down the jetway. the boarding agent said "oh well, you go" and sent me. I didn't care so much that I was searched, but was horrified that they didn't check the man who was "randomly flagged". I complained and the security said "oh, it doesn't really matter". I guess the lesson is play deaf if you are a terrorist!

A government worker---no wonder.
Don't feel bad Jackie, this gray fringed balding 68 year old senior was checked twice by British Airways going, and once returning on London flights last October.

I have flown AirTran many times and have never had a problem. Logan Airport security is a mess though. It is them who let the highjackers through on 9/11. They still seem mentally retarted at least. I boarded an Alitalia flight there last month and waited over an hour in a 1000 ft line while they screened everyone through one metal detector and one x ray machine. I will never connect at Logan again.

There is sign of hope at Logan - in the past month lines have gotten a lot shorter. I think their strategy was to make lines so long that even terrorists would get frustrated and give up and go someplace else. On 2 different dates in past month family members have gotten through security (one on Delta, one on USAir) in under 10 minutes. Don't know about international though.

I am a f/a for AirTran and I encounter this type of attitude every single day. Passengers want me to lift the bags that are too heavy for them to lift-I can assist but I cannot do it by myself. If you can't lift your own bad, what makes you think I can? Security is tight and as other posts has noted, Boston, LGA, Dulles and EWR are probably the worst. My husband flies with me a great deal and he is always triple searched, so please don;t be offended--that is life in 2002!!!Finally because of your husband's height, you should considered purchasing seats in Business Class--

Experienced flyers DO NOT pack their suitcases so full they can't lift them and they are prepared for searches and lines. Sounds to me like Jackie only travel once in a while. What the heck did you pack in that bag Jackie that you couldn't lift it the kitchen sink.

Secondly-You have an attitude here. Sounds to me like you have a general attitude problem that just because you worked for some rep you deserve preferential treatment. No wonder you were singled out. No one likes that kind of attitude especially when they are trying to do their job. You have a BIG chip on your shoulder lady and you probably don't even realize it.

Thirdly-AT has nothing to do with the security in the airport.

Bottom line-Lose the attitude, learn to pack and next time be a little nicer and more patient....

No one has touched on a point that the original poster even considered - full body/cavity searches.

I think you should be thanking your lucky stars lady that they didn't pull you both aside to that stark little room with some bull dyke named Bruce just waiting for some WASPY, uptight, delusions of grandeur having blonde haired, idiot like you and your husband.

Don't you know to grab a wheelchair as soon as you get into the terminal? Staff will go out of their way to help you out - I bet they would've even lifted your overweight luggage.

Speaking of overweight luggage - don't you worry if everyone on your flight was as inconsiderate as you and your husband - packing over the 50 or so pounds they allow per suitcase, they plane would be overweight for passengers/luggage for a safe takeoff?
The airlines impose a monetary fee for overweight luggage, thinking that if it hits people where they care most - in the wallet - they will THINK next time and keep it light.

Remember Aaliyah's plane?

Anyway, happy trails on your next flight. I bet you don't say a frigging thing next time!!!

ttt

To the top for the dumb blonde original poster.

Security issue aside, whether those incompetents do the right thing or not, AirTran is a pain in arse to fly with. I have flown with them twice (not by choice) and both times the flights were canceled or delayed due to 1. mechanical problems (pilot seat broken, apparently the pilot's ass was so big it broke the seat) 2. plane was too empty

I had to wait and wait and wait, missed a meeting with a client and had to ask for a different airline. They are still very much Valujet.

Two family members flew Air Tran into Houston last year......and reported duct tape holding together some of the plane's interior. When they arrived, baggage was not sent to the usual carousel, but they found it when a local bellowed, "AIR TRAN! AIR TRAN!" They still laugh, but we're all glad they made it safely on this raggedy ride.

I don't care how long it takes to get through security checks! It could be 1 or 5 it doesn't matter to me. Instead of complaining about it be glad they are doing it! You are much safer for having gone through it. Next time I fly, I will be seriously medicated. And yes, I will fly out of Boston and be scared to death.

Me - Do you worried that being seriously medicated would impede your motor skills if you had to exit the plane in an emergency situation? I have often wished I had a Valium or something on flights, but always wondered if I would be trampled for being slow. Just a thought.

Me- how does being searched multiple times by the same security team improve security at the airport? Instead of obviously harrassing this couple the crack security team of "payback and retribution" could have been using their time to target other possible problem travelers.

Jackie, whether you feel she deserved it or not, was the recipient of idiot, small-minded and incompetent security personnel. Security needs to focus on the issue at hand, which is to insure the safety of passengers and air travel and not in punishing people for real or imagined snobbery.

First, about being medicated....I am not talking "drool worthy" meds. Just a bit of something to take the edge off. I know many people PRE 9/11 who medicated themselves for a flight. Nothing wrong with that. I see no reason POST 9/11 why it should be an issue for you if someone CHOOSES to self medicate. To each his own I think. I had been a frequent and not nervous flyer PRE 9/11 but now I am nervous about my next flight and I will take something to take the edge off. God forbid if there is some issue with the plane the day I am scheduled to go! I will NOT get back on that plane. I don't care how much it will cost, I will go to another airline or wait for another plane.

About security....I personally have no problem with multiple security checks. How many people wander around once they check their bags curbside, checkin at the counter/gate, go through security? I don't think people go from the curb to their gate without a stop here and there so multiple checks make sense. And it doesn't sound like these people followed this couple from point A to B to C simply to harass. Could it just be a matter of people being moved from one area to another? Anyone think this couple wandered a bit since the first meeting?

Jackie -

I'm very curious about your use of the term "people with disabilties." I can see how that applies to your husband, given his recent surgery and doctor's orders, but what disability kept YOU from lifting each of those suticases? You sound like an absolute princess.

Kelly you make it sound like being a princess is a bad thing!

Jackie -

Don't you feel a tiny bit pathetic about being so dependent on your husband?

Yeah, what he said!!

You "little women" who absolutely depend on the "man" do the "man" stuff like lifting heavy objects make me sick!!!

What would you have done if you were born a dyke??

Hmmmmmmm.......

Jackie -

I'm wondering about this bag lifting issue too. You speak as though the idea of YOU lifting the bags is simply unthinkable, i.e. that this is a man's job and you couldn't possibly take care of yourself. What gives?