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Stephen Lynch called the TSA’s ability to detect weapons ‘pitiful’

“I fly a lot, my family flies a lot and just thinking about the breaches there, it’s horrific,’’ said Lynch in a hearing Tuesday.

By Kristi Palma @kristipalma

November 4, 2015

1 minute to read

Rep. Stephen Lynch didn’t mince words when discussing Transportation Security Administration airport security test results during a Congressional hearing Tuesday.

“I would use pathetic in looking at the number of times people got through with guns or bombs … it was really pathetic. And when I say that, I mean pitiful,’’ Lynch said.

Lynch was referring to the results of covert tests performed at eight airports across the country. The classified results were not made public.

“The test results were disappointing and troubling,’’ Inspector General John Roth told the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. “The failures included failures in the technology, failures in TSA procedures, and human error.’’

Lynch asked Peter Neffenger, the new TSA administrator, if he has ever considered offering bonuses to screeners who nab people with weapons.

“I’m a big fan of incentivizing the right behavior,’’ said Neffenger.

Neffenger, on the job for four months, said he’s implementing changes in the wake of the tests.

“In the past there’s been a culture of denial,’’ Lynch said. “We need to get at this or we’re going to have a major major disaster here on a commercial airline or on a train. People will say we didn’t see that coming. But we did.’’

The TSA is responsible for screening travelers and baggage for more than 1.8 million passengers a day at 450 airports across the United States, according to Roth.

“I fly a lot, my family flies a lot and just thinking about the breaches there, it’s horrific,’’ said Lynch in the hearing.