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| DHS Gets Rid of Dress Code, Hotel Regulations for Air Marshals | ||
| 2006-08-25 | ||
| WASHINGTON — Air marshals were told Thursday they will be allowed to dress the way they want and choose their own hotels in order to protect their anonymity while on missions. Federal Air Marshal Service chief Dana Brown, who has been in the job for five months, said he was changing the rules, starting Sept. 1, after listening to air marshals' concerns. In a memo to the air marshals, Brown said the dress code was changed to "allow you to blend in and not direct attention to yourself, as well as be sufficiently functional to enable you to conduct your law enforcement responsibilities." Air marshals had complained that Brown's predecessor, Thomas Quinn, insisted on a too-formal dress code that allowed people to pick them out. The marshals said, for example, that being forced to wear a jacket and collared shirt made them stand out on flights to Hawaii. The dress requirements were loosened in October, but the agency kept details under wraps. The change announced Thursday leaves it up to marshals how each of them dresses for duty. Air marshals also won an agreement from Brown to let them choose their own hotels "within economic and related guidelines" to help keep their identities secret. Marshals claimed that their undercover status was threatened because they had to stay at designated hotels and show their credentials when checking in. A recent report to Congress found that the Sheraton Fort Lauderdale Airport Hotel in Florida had designated the Federal Air Marshal Service "company of the month" because of the number of rooms it had reserved at the hotel.
Brown has been reaching out to rank-and-file air marshals since he took the job as director. He has said that morale was worse than he thought after speaking with a number of air marshals. He praised the marshals for helping to restore order in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, evacuating civilians from Lebanon and providing more security on international flights after the recent terror plot in Britain was broken up. Air marshals were on the Northwest Airlines Amsterdam-to-Bombay flight that was diverted Wednesday after a dozen passengers acted suspiciously.
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| Posted by:Sherry |
| #9 Only if they stop serving booze. I'm an enthusiastic NRA member, but I draw the line at armed business guys at the end of a long stressful week of sales calls and presentations who ALSO are served drinks on a 6 hr flight. ;-) |
| Posted by: lotp 2006-08-25 19:55 |
| #8 I think the solution is for the TSA to ask each passenger if they are carrying a weapon. If the passenger says "No", TSA should ask if they would prefer 9 MM or .45 caliber, then issue the gun of choice and at least one clip of ammunition. |
| Posted by: Rambler 2006-08-25 18:34 |
| #7 Maybe they can help serve meals and brew fresh coffee. |
| Posted by: Perfesser 2006-08-25 12:40 |
| #6 A bureaucracy is sure to think that its duty is to augment official power, official business, or official members, rather than to leave free the energies of mankind; it overdoes the quantity of government, as well as impairs its quality. Well stated. My sentiments exactly. |
| Posted by: mcsegeek1 2006-08-25 11:58 |
| #5 Genius, pure genius, your government at work ... I would say bureaucracy at work A bureaucracy is sure to think that its duty is to augment official power, official business, or official members, rather than to leave free the energies of mankind; it overdoes the quantity of government, as well as impairs its quality. The truth is, that a skilled bureaucracy is, though it boasts of an appearance of science, quite inconsistent with the true principles of the art of business. -- Walter Bagehot |
| Posted by: SwissTex 2006-08-25 10:39 |
| #4 Don't forget the CIA agents who are in hot water in Italy were ID'd by their own frequent flier cards. Sheesh. |
| Posted by: Seafarious 2006-08-25 09:13 |
| #3 Unfortunately, that's lightning fast for a reform at a federal agency.....and amazingly enough, it even uses common sense! Don't worry, though....his successor will reverse it, especially if it seems to work. |
| Posted by: Swamp Blondie 2006-08-25 08:34 |
| #2 baby steps |
| Posted by: Frank G 2006-08-25 08:11 |
| #1 Gee, that only took five years to figure out. Now I'm sure we'll have the WoT wrapped up in no time now that that is taken care of. |
| Posted by: gorb 2006-08-25 02:16 |