Increased Ramp Threats From TSA

These types of intrusions are just stepping stones to more thorough scrutiny by the U.S. Government into the private lives of its citizens. The government cannot stop with this approach to customs interdiction. It will develop and implement more stringent rules regarding private pilots flying personal aircraft in the continental U.S.A. Everything passed down from lawmakers is indeed a stepping stone towards whatever lofty goal is envisioned by policy makers. Are we safer? Is America safer? It seems these new rules and regulations affect only law abiding U.S. pilots and citizens. No one illegal is going to land and risk interdiction by armed TSA agents or land at an airport that requires special background checks along with the requisite badge of approval. So Who Is This Really For Again??? ...... lakotahope

Customs steps up aircraft screening near U.S.-Mexico border

By AOPA ePublishing Staff

In the wake of a Long Beach, Calif., incident in which a pilot and his passengers were ramp checked at gunpoint by local law enforcement officers and Customs and Border Protection officials, AOPA has reached out to customs to prevent a repeat.

“Having weapons drawn at the ready without just cause is extreme,” said AOPA Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Craig Spence. “Customs has indicated that this type of ramp check is atypical and that pilots do not need to worry about similar forceful inspections.”

Pilots could, however, notice an increase in routine ramp checks at airports along the southwestern U.S. border. The Obama administration released a new National Southwest Border Counternarcotics Strategy June 15 to reduce drug trafficking and the flow of cash and weapons across the border. The initiative applies to air, maritime, and ground transportation.

AOPA also is working with customs to ensure that general aviation passenger manifests collected through its Electronic Advance Passenger Information System (eAPIS) are not used beyond the intended scope of terrorist watch list matching.

“AOPA will continue to work with the Department of Homeland Security and customs to find practical and workable alternatives to enhance security that do not unduly restrict GA operations,” Spence said. “In the meantime, we encourage pilots to continue with their planned international flights.”