POP Airport Security...Puhleez......

STUPID.............EVERYONE getting on the AA flights...........not sure if the other airlines are doing it...........they have the area to the seats "roped" off and EVERYONE has to be searched just to get into the waiting area.........NOT SURE if I saw it on the other airlines............seems to have been happening since the end of December.

You can thank the USA for that. It is in place specifically for planes headed to the US, courtesy of the US.

Complain to the US Congress, not the DR.

FritoBandito said:

Of course they confiscated my disposable lighter again, and a pair of fingernail clippers (my lucky one which I've had for 10 years). The said that the 1 1/2 inch pointed file was a "deadly weapon." Wouldn't even let me put them into my suitcase to avoid confiscation.

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I am always suprised at people who carry contraband, knowing it is such, and then get angry when these items are confiscated??

Security measures apply to all passengers and I for one like to travel knowing safety is a priority. Yes, it may be a tad more inconvenient or lengthy but at the end of the day, thats a small price to pay IMO.

By following the very simple guidlelines posted on the TSA website, it can clearly avoid any of the above happening.

I am glad there will not be lighters, disposable or otherwise, on any flights. This is a security risk. I thought everyone knew this. Likewise nail files.

POP Bad Boy said:

STUPID.............EVERYONE getting on the AA flights...........not sure if the other airlines are doing it...........they have the area to the seats "roped" off and EVERYONE has to be searched just to get into the waiting area.........NOT SURE if I saw it on the other airlines............seems to have been happening since the end of December.

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Possible AA only. In March I travelled on both Jet Blue into JFK/Burlington Vt. and West Jet POP to Toronto, with no hassles. JB had a pro-forma search at the final boarding but no big thing. Had a lighter in my carry-on on both occasions, they didn't grab it. Comes in handy for a quick smoke when you land. LOL.

windeguy said:

These screenings are deemed necessary for your safety by US regulations. If you are carrying something that is not legal to be brought on board, they should take it from you. I don't like it either but such minor inconveniences that add to safety are a good thing.

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Agreed, I'll even take a strip search if it meant nobody on board was carrying something that would bring the plane down.
Have you noticed when landing in the D.R. everyone claps that the plane landed in one piece. Times have changed, safety first is a must.

FritoBandito said:

Give me a break!!!! Getting screened TWICE before boarding???? .....

All this from people who don't even check your bags coming in, but leaving they think you are smuggling state secrets from the country.

What a comedy of errors!!!!!!!:laugh:

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Well, what can I say?
I am sorry, but you can't really blame it on the Dominicans, as they (luckily) are not the driving force in decision making behind detailing the security of US bound flights. They will be required to follow procedures as advised by the US Homeland Security and maybe TSA.
But then, you can't really blame the Americans for the little ordeal you had to suffer when you tried to sneak on illegal articles into the cabin of a US flagged vessel either. Who can blame them, especially after the most recent incident last December?
So, it would seem that the ones to blame are the Bin Ladens of this ill going world.
It so looks like, terrorism has reached far beyond the direct deaths and grief of thousands 8 1/2 years ago... even so far that now YOU have lost your disposable lighter and lucky clipper! What a shame!
Do you think you can bare your losses or would you like for us to see if we could help you get a little post traumatic event counseling, now that you have been affected too?

Anyways, I really can't resist asking you, did you really plan to have a smoke while you'd celebrate your little pedicure on that flight? :tired:

Next time something like this occurs to poor you, upon arrival in the US, why don't you raise one hell of a fuss at the Homeland Security or TSA office about it? :cheeky: Maybe, just maybe, they'll be better trained to explain to you the ins and out of why aircraft security seems to have become a little more complicated llately and HOW IT IS MEANT TO PROTECT YOU TOO... after they adequately calm you down, of course. :bunny:


... J-D.

You CAN actually blame it on the country of departure. I have traveled from many Latin American countries back to the US. Each country has different procedures. American Airlines in EZE has had a separate boarding lounge, closed by security staff, for decades! They won't even allow you to bring in a bottle of water purchased in the waiting area. In MVD, no food allowed at all, not even a chocolate bar. In Lima (as in other Latin American countries), you still have to answer to Airline employees the stupid questions of who packed your suitcases, if they have been with you all the time, anyone gave you something to bring, etc. I complained to corporate AA a million times, only to hear that security procedures are set at the country level with required procedures by country authorities.

Go and spend half an hour in St Paul's chapel at ground zero and you will NEVER complain about airport security again!

The way I see it...if one doesnt like the security measures one encounters when travelling...dont travel, simple as that. We all have choices.

I flew out of SDQ airport on March 18 heading to Detroit with Spirit Air and we had the same scenerio. But like other posters have said, if it is a saftey issue then I am all for it as well. For the few extra minutes it takes its NO problem at all.

drloca said:

The way I see it...if one doesnt like the security measures one encounters when travelling...dont travel, simple as that. We all have choices.:

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drloca, we all know it's not quite that simple. Airline travel is no longer a luxury but an absolute necessity. Planes go where other modes of transportation can't.
Many people including myself need to vent when they feel an injustice has been put on them, aka, airline security. All these people that think they have been put out and so inconvenienced need to realize that all it takes is one person, one demented person to bring a plane down. I have been on 2 emergency landings in my life and the feeling you get in your gut is something you can't imagine. If airport security ever lightens up, everyone will have hell to pay. Let them vent, it's free.

POP Bad Boy said:

STUPID.............EVERYONE getting on the AA flights...........not sure if the other airlines are doing it...........they have the area to the seats "roped" off and EVERYONE has to be searched just to get into the waiting area.........NOT SURE if I saw it on the other airlines............seems to have been happening since the end of December.

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I had family members flying out of POP at end of March on Continental and they reported also going through the double screening. They were not upset, however, since they are very aware that not everybody trying to board a flight these days want the plane to make a safe landing at the other end.

Ken2 said:

I had family members flying out of POP at end of March on Continental and they reported also going through the double screening. They were not upset, however, since they are very aware that not everybody trying to board a flight these days want the plane to make a safe landing at the other end.

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Good your relatives took it in their stride, not like those who want to play "the victim"..... and saw it for what its worth, as it is commonplace in many airports I have travelled through of late.

I guess we all have different priorities.

2nd screening at gate today in POP. About 5 minutes in line, with a quick & not very thorough look-thru of carry-on bag. No big deal. Also, noted 'lighters' listed on the non-permitted items poster at the first passport check.

Effective?
Interestingly... if you had no bags with you, they did a pat down. If you had carry-on, there was no pat down. So... if you wanted to take prohibited items today, have a carry-on & just put the contraband in your pocket.


**posted from 31k feet about 600 miles out of Pto Plata - ain't the 21st century cool? **

CFA123 said:

**posted from 31k feet about 600 miles out of Pto Plata - ain't the 21st century cool? :**

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cfa123, have a safe flight.....

If you want to blame anyone for double passenger clearances...blame the knuckleheads who keep trying to blow shi-ite up....let's see there's Richard Reid, the Brit (of Islamic faith) who tried to light his shoes on fire....then there's the son of the Nigerian banker (who also just happened to be an Islamic extremist) who tried to light his "junk" on fire on Christmas Day....and then of course we have the 9/11 19 who felt it "their religious duty" to hijack and fly planes into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon...they were also....oh nevermind...we KNOW what they were....

Let's not forget the attacks on British soil...the DOCTORS who drove a Jeep into the airport while it was ablaze or the backpack bombers who hit the subways and the bus...oh and then there is the train attack in Spain....common denominator in those attacks? yep...we know.

Finally, in Russia....the female subway bomber ...shown in a photo with her boyfriend..wearing a hajib....as he held a pistol, the two of them "getting their terrorist pose on"....AGAIN...the common denominator is............we KNOW...

Something has to be done to stop the lunacy...and if it means making everyone having to grab their ankles for a BC check so be it....until the world finally admits to THE PROBLEM and attacks it head on, WE will all suffer for the actions of a minority of the people......

drloca said:

Good your relatives took it in their stride, not like those who want to play "the victim"..... and saw it for what its worth, as it is commonplace in many airports I have travelled through of late.

I guess we all have different priorities.

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Loca's right. I've experienced this at several airports I've passed through lately in Latin America (Bogota and Panama City spring to mind). A mild inconvenience, probably didn't contribute one iota to actual increased security, but such are the times we live in...

FritoBandito said:

Give me a break!!!! Getting screened TWICE before boarding???? Didn't expect to be screened AGAIN just before entering the airline waiting area. Full body patdowns on everyone,..........

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POP Bad Boy said:

STUPID.............EVERYONE getting on the AA flights...........not sure if the other airlines are doing it...........they have the area to the seats "roped" off and EVERYONE has to be searched just to get into the waiting area..........

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Continental airlines at SDQ has been doing this for the past several months. It happened to me in December, January, February, and March. They scrutinize every little thing at the gate checkpoint, everything.

Prior to this they would randomly select people as you approach the ramp to the plane.

One good thing I will say is upon arrival they check each and every luggage claim ticket. No way will you walk out of SDQ airport with someone else luggage. When I return to the states you can very easily grab any piece of luggage and walk out of the airport with no questions asked.

Don't forget there is no charge for the luggage cart..........or is that included in all the fees we pay coming and going.