Standard Mischief

Chris Soghoian (over at his new cnet digs) goes over how to (usually) skip most of the airport screening line wait by refusing to show ID. He claims that you get bumped to the front of the line and end up going through some” secondary screening”. Copy of letter from the TSA is included.

Here lies the bleg. One of the secondary screening devices is the “puffer machine”. A poorly sourced Wikipedia article says that the machine in question detects microscopic particles of “gunpowder” or “residue from bomb-making materials”. The problem I suspect here is that the machine would likely give off a false positive on people who reload firearms ammunition or perhaps even those who merely enjoy the shooting sports, both of which are legal activities.

A quick search of teh intarw3bz turns up nothing, so I can either bleg or try to fly without ID after dabbing a little Blue Dot behind each ear. So can anyone tell relate a personal experiance of going through the “puffer machine” after shooting or reloading within about 24 hours of their flight? Did you pass or fail?

Update before publication: Here’s a few threads on Flyertalk.com (emphasis mine):

Janeen: I had the puffer machine experience at the Providence, R.I. airport early last month. Unfortunately, I flunked the test and I have no idea why. After they opened the doors of the machine to let me out, I was pat-down searched and questioned. They wanted to know if I had recently been around any guns, chemicals, or explosives (no to all three). They asked where I worked, took my driver’s license, and called over a police officer, who (I assume) ran a warrant check on me. Before they gave me back my license, one of the guys appeared to write down information from it.

FliesWay2Much:Your experience is the slippery slope of any semblance of privacy. The TSA just nuked the Privacy Act. If you alarm the puffer, you are already assumed to have handled explosives. You are turned over to the cops, forced to reveal personal information, you have a check run on you, and are essentially “detained” by anyone’s definition. …and all because you dared to buy a plane ticket. Wow — the TSA really upped the ante on us this time.

I just love that there’s such a streak of “civil libertarians” (that’s the preferred mainstream media term for people who are not the ACLU but opine about “civil liberties”. Can’t be giving any free advertising to the Cato Institute or anything ) on what’s basically a forum on how to work the frequent flyer system. (I’ve linked to the low-bandwidth version of the forum, but if you search with all the extra overhead, you’ll also see a bunch of Jefferson quotes and Kip Hawley slams in the taglines.)

SDF_Traveler: I was on the patio in my backyard on the 4th and my yard happens to back up to a decent sized park. Some folks were putting off a spectacular fireworks display that someone likely purchased across the state line (i.e. the fireworks you would see at a professional display).

 

During one of the spectacular displays, a chunk of unexploded firework came down and nailed me in the chest. Thankfully it wasn’t burning or hot - nor was I injured; it just stung a bit; most thankfully it only hit my chest in the peck area (and not my face!).Problem: It did leave a big brown coloured powder type stain on a good shirt. $20 says this residue will trigger an ETD or Puff Portal if not cleansed properly.

DCA TSO: Why would you even risk setting of an ETD or ETP machine a second time? Are you looking to be placed on the “no-fly” list?

ralfp: Because he wants to use his shirt? Or is the presence trivial/trace amounts of legal materials grounds for punishment by the gov’t? I guess people who work with fireworks and in mines aren’t allowed to fly. :rolleyes:

It’s wrong that anyone has to worry about this. Why should the OP’s name, etc. have been recorded the first time around? If he actually had non-trivial amounts of TNT I would understand it, but traces? What percentage of ETD alarms are of actual concern? Is it something other than 0%?

PatrickHenry1775: My grade in Organic Chemistry II was a D, so take that into account re this advice. Rubbing alcohol - isopropanol - affects quite a few chemicals. What material is your shirt? If cotton, should be no adverse reaction if you soak the area of impact with isopropanol for about 30 minutes. First test this treatment on an area of the shirt that is not visible when you are wearing it. Then rinse the shirt thoroughly in water. In fact, after the isopropanol I would soak the shirt in dishwashing detergent. After the rinse, wash the shirt as you normally would. I would let the shirt air dry, because tossing it in a dryer could set the residue.