TSA Ponders Barring Hundreds From DC Flights

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is still pondering whether it will bar hundreds of passengers from flying to Washington D.C this week for the inauguration of President-Elect Joe Biden.

The agency said Friday it is continuing to conduct risk assessments on hundreds of people to determine whether they should be subject to enhanced screening or barred from flying entirely, according to the Washington Post.

An agency spokesman declined to say whether the assessments had led to anyone being stopped from flying yet.

Washington D.C. and Capitol police are preparing for protests and possible disruption.

“Our intelligence and vetting professionals are working diligently around-the-clock to ensure those who may pose a threat to our aviation sector undergo enhanced screening or are prevented from boarding an aircraft,” TSA Administrator David Pekoske said in a statement.

The agency said it also has deployed more law enforcement to airports in the Washington region, aided by bomb-sniffing dogs. There will be random screenings at gates, more federal air marshals on some flights and personnel deployed to major rail stations.

The TSA and the airlines have been under pressure from aviation unions and lawmakers in the wake of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol by pro-Donald Trump supporters. Flight attendants union president Sara Nelson has called on the airlines to coordinate efforts to identify potential troublemakers.

“Our ongoing partnership with airports, airlines and surface transportation system operators continues to be a critical element in our collective efforts to keep the nation’s transportation systems safe,” Pekoske said.

On Friday, the leaders of 22 unions representing employees in the transportation sector issued an open letter saying that in recent days their members working at airlines, transit systems and railroads have been threatened harassed and assaulted. The unions called on the federal government to use its authority to keep the public safe.

“Amid ongoing threats of future violence — including Inauguration Day calls to arms by right-wing militants — front line transportation workers are left wondering how they can protect themselves, their passengers, and our country going forward,” the unions wrote. “This has gone too far, and it must stop.”