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Comments (6)
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Save/ShareTSA declines to comment on "unbelievable" case of identity fraud on recent Air Canada flight.
If there's any bright side to all the hassles of going through airport security (and as any traveler is aware, there are many) it's the sense of security that all those measures provide.
I myself generally trust that the precautions homeland security takes make me and my fellow passengers safer, so I'm able to see all the red tape as more comforting than annoying.
[+] Enlarge photo
On October 29th, a young man in Hong Kong, described as an "Asian looking male that appeared to be in his early 20s," boarded an Air Canada flight bound for Vancouver, disguised as an elderly man—silicone face and neck mask, decoy eyeglasses, Mr. Rogers-esque brown cardigan and all.
He even went so far as to mimic "the movements of an elderly person" and—more shockingly—to swap boarding passes with an actual citizen of the United States, who was booked on that flight as a passenger.
A Canadian Borders Services Agency alert, dated November 1, 2010, said that "it is believed that the subject and the actual United States Citizen passenger (whose date of birth is 1955) performed a boarding pass swap, with the subject using an Aeroplan card as identification to board the flight."
Aeroplan is nothing more than a credit card, which allows card holders to earn frequent flyer miles. (How appropriate, right?)
The U.S. citizen in question is so far unidentified.
Air Canada officials pointed out that "there are multiple identity checks before departure at the Hong Kong international airport, including Chinese government-run Hong Kong passport control, which Hong Kong originating passengers must undergo." Still, the subject successfully got on the plane under an assumed identity, with the U.S. citizen's boarding pass.
After he boarded the flight and the plane took off—in a quick change worthy of Superman—he simply walked into the airplane bathroom and removed his mask and eyeglasses. He then emerged as a young man and calmly returned to his seat, much to the surprise of the plane crew and other passengers, who alerted officials in Canada.
After landing in Vancouver, the young man was immediately arrested and taken into custody by Canadian Border Services Officers. He has since made a claim for refugee protection.
Why, exactly, he did all this remains unclear. But that, to me, is entirely beside the point—I don't care why, I want to know how. How on earth did he slip past security in this Halloween get-up?
I contacted our very own Transportation Security Administration to find out, but representatives there declined to comment.
All we can hope, I suppose, is that our screening processes are a lot more fool-proof than those executed last week in Hong Kong.
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How is this a "TSA" failure? I'm sure they make their mistakes, but this doesn't seem to be on them.
Posted By Dan on November 11, 2010, 3:57 PM
It's stranger to me that he didn't wait until he got to his destination and use the bathroom at that airport. He could have waited for the bathroom to clear and nobody would have been the wiser.
Posted By Jessica Denise on November 11, 2010, 4:07 PM
as mush as I love this store of ineptitude, this flight had nothing to do with TSA. Seems Chinese immigration let him through. And it was a Canadian bound flight on a Canadian carrier. Zip to do with the USA. Your partial reports are from over 10 days ago. There have been more recent updates.
Are all your posts this inaccurate?
Posted By eagertraveler on November 11, 2010, 8:38 PM
That is kind of the point... none of the attepted terroist activities and breaches in security have originated in the US... or been on domestic flights.
So why are we treated like criminals?
The TSA is a joke, they are Reactionary rather than Proactive. Isreal has the best airport security in the world, without molesting passengers and our TSA won't even consult with them.
Also, Follow the money those stupid machines are EXPENSIVE!! So who stands to get rich from them, I am betting and giving odds it is someone in our government.
Posted By Eric on November 26, 2010, 1:48 AM
Sorry Andrea, your wrong the feeling of security is lost on TSA agents patting down little old ladies and children. The key to succesful security is focus not mass gropings.
Posted By rich miller on November 27, 2010, 1:34 PM
No way. I just won't fly. I shouldn't have my ability to move freely impaired, my body scanned naked, my privacy violated and my private parts even patted let alone groped when under no reasonable suspicion. I don't feel safer or more secure being violated and subjugated by some lackie forced to do this dirty work of oppression because of a horrible education system and economy. It further degrades him and myself and the civil liberties my family has fought for at home and abroad!I refuse to give my money to an airport that allows this violation. i refuse to be a negative example to children. There is enough child abuse that I don't need to show children another example of inappropriate behavior by both parties. Adults feeling up adults against there will FOR A PAY CHECK! My family has not fought at home and abroad for this country so I would throw away my civil rights, degrade myself and others by allowing myself to be irradiated, scanned naked, have my sack played with and my Goddaughters breasts and groin felt especially when there is no reasonable belief that we are danger to that plane. It is unconstitutional weather it makes 99.9% feel safer or not!
Posted By chris on November 27, 2010, 11:07 PM