"Im Here To Shoot a Pilot": famed film director held by TSA at LAX for 5 hours

Director Mike Figgis best know for directing Leaving las Vegas and Internal Affairs was held for over 5 hours at Los Angeles International Airport. A TSA screener apparently misunderstood Figgis's statement that he was there to "Shoot a pilot". The screener took the statment literaly and held the director. Figgis was a tthe airport to shoot a pilot TV program.

TSA and all of this secuirty is for show at best. This just highlights what a joke it really is. The only thing it seems to be doing is making travel difficult for the everyday traveler, but a real terrorist would hav eno problem doing what they needed to do.

aviationweek.typepad.com...


[edit on 6/2/07 by FredT]

[edit on 6/2/07 by FredT]

It's not the TSA screener's fault. It's a Felony to make threats against the aircraft or aircrew. It always has been. The screener heard the person say "Shooting a pilot" and took it as a threat to the aircrew. Now if you're at an airport and you hear someone say "I'm here to shoot a pilot" which are you going to assume? That they're making a film, or they're talking about shooting someone?

When I was a screener we had so many people denied boarding and held over for 24 hours, because one of the things we had to check were aerosol cans, and they would always try to be funny by saying "Checking my pipe bomb?" It's a 10 year $25,000 fine since before 9/11 to make jokes like that.

This just highlights what a joke the TSA has become IMHO. Having traveled alot post 911 it seems worse than before. The TB case recently, things like this et al. makes me think that for all the billions spent, we have had a negative result.

This is a typical overreaction IMHO, a few simple questions could have resolved the matter. Whats up with the 5 hour detention?

[edit on 6/2/07 by FredT]

This was happening BEFORE the TSA came in. I started screening in 1998, and left just before the TSA took over, for a technical position at the same airport. Any time someone makes a joke like this we would end up with them being held for at least an hour, depending on response times, and what the statement was. Any time someone makes a joke like this the airline manager has to be notified, upper level screening company (in this case TSA) managers, local police, and sometimes the FBI.

TSA is a joke, last time i flew I was allowed on an international flight, post 9/11, and I was allowed to carry 8 sharpened steel tent stakes about 10" long that i inadvertently left in my carry-on. As the bag was heading for x-ray i remembered i had 8 nice sized shanks, way more effective than boxcutters, and told security that i'm carrying "weapons". They just kinda shrugged, and waved me through.

I then asked them in surprise "you're letting me through carrying a bundle of shanks?" and they just said "don't worry, it's cool" and gave me a "don't hijack the plane" kinda look, and off i went with a bag of weapons. I even said at one point "so you're letting me fly with a bag of shanks?" and they didn't care, they just wanted to wave their wands and look busy till quitting time. I guess i don't look muslim enough to get hassled like i should have been. If i wasn't in a hurry to get to my destination i would probably have said my praise to Allah and then see how they felt about my bag of weaponry.

I did use the word weapons and shanks when describing to TSA workers, and even started describing hypothetically how i would use 'em, and how they'd sink 8" deep and puncture vitals, arguing my case and then asked that they will confiscate them, i tried at one point to voluntarily surrender them, and as i went to take 'em out of my bag they just told me to "get going" and went about "scanning" the passengers behind me.


Personally, i was appalled at their casual attitude about it, disgusted that it's that easy to carry a terror teams' worth of weaponry onto an international flight, and just plain angry that i was allowed through mostly because i seemed white enough not to be a threat, reverse racial profiling. I should have been in the back room with a rubber gloved finger up my rectum the first time i said i had weapons, but they still just let me throughand didn't really care.

The funniest part of all though, is that they did care about one thing, i wasn't getting through with my bag of weapons unless i took my shoes off. They REALLY made a big deal about the shoes, yet turned a blind eye to my armory.

I did make it all the way to my destination through 2 connecting flights and customs, and still had my tent stakes in my bag when i walked out of the airport at the other end.

Originally posted by FredT
Director Mike Figgis best know for directing Leaving las Vegas and Internal Affairs was held for over 5 hours at Los Angeles International Airport. A TSA screener apparently misunderstood Figgis's statement that he was there to "Shoot a pilot". The screener took the statment literaly and held the director. Figgis was a tthe airport to shoot a pilot TV program.

TSA and all of this secuirty is for show at best. This just highlights what a joke it really is. The only thing it seems to be doing is making travel difficult for the everyday traveler, but a real terrorist would hav eno problem doing what they needed to do.

aviationweek.typepad.com...


[edit on 6/2/07 by FredT]

[edit on 6/2/07 by FredT]

That is so funny..the screener is an idiot. LAX has entertainment people through all the time, it can't be the first time this screener has heard film/TV jargon. and who would announce their intention to shoot someone to the screener?

Originally posted by Zaphod58
It's not the TSA screener's fault. It's a Felony to make threats against the aircraft or aircrew. It always has been. The screener heard the person say "Shooting a pilot" and took it as a threat to the aircrew. Now if you're at an airport and you hear someone say "I'm here to shoot a pilot" which are you going to assume? That they're making a film, or they're talking about shooting someone?

When I was a screener we had so many people denied boarding and held over for 24 hours, because one of the things we had to check were aerosol cans, and they would always try to be funny by saying "Checking my pipe bomb?" It's a 10 year $25,000 fine since before 9/11 to make jokes like that.

Trust me, here in L.A., if you hear someone say they're here to shoot a pilot, everyone thinks TV show, even at the airport. Now, if he'd jumped on a desk and started waving a gun around..that's different.

LAX has also been known as the worst airport in the US for security. Even when I was screening. If someone came through our airport and we caught something they ALWAYS said "But we came through LA with it."