Qantas and Virgin pilots slam 'humiliating' airport security pat-downs

Pilots say they face daily ‘knuckle rubs’ and crotch searches because high tech body scanners are triggered by uniforms, while passengers board flights with cap guns and large branches.

Qantas and Virgin Australia pilots are calling for changes to airport security screening processes they describe as public humiliation at best and sexual assault at worst.

The issues stem from the rollout of hi-tech body scanners throughout the country which have led to a new level of scrutiny for the aviation professionals, largely due to the epaulettes and wings they wear as part of their uniform.

Even if the pilots do remove the items before screening, which often requires shirts to be unbuttoned, they are subjected to pat-downs and even “knuckle rubs” due to their front pockets which add density deemed suspicious by the machines.

Australian and International Pilots Association safety and technical director Steve Cornell said they accepted security screening was part of their work day but the inconsistency of the processes and often over-the-top application was making their lives a misery.

“For many this has become a very stressful part of the job and presents a potential psychosocial hazard due to the frequency of pilots’ interactions with airport security and inconsistency in the manner in which procedures are applied,” said Captain Cornell.

“Treating pilots as a security threat when they are actually the last line of defence makes no sense. Pilots should be treated as trusted partners as they are in other parts of the world.”

To make matters worse, it seemed that while pilots are being treated as potential security threats, passengers are not.

Pilots’ wings, and even pockets are triggering alarms in airport body scanners, prompting pat downs the pilots say go too far.

On a Qantas flight from Brisbane to Melbourne this year, a young passenger was found with a cap gun in his possession which he fired – to the alarm of fellow travellers.

Crew confiscated the cap gun, and notified the Australian Federal Police who sought a formal report from the captain.

In another instance, a man boarded a regional flight carrying a large branch covered in wool. It was unclear how he got through security but the captain ordered the branch be stored in the cargo hold for the service.

Bras led to knuckle rubs

A female Qantas pilot who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said there was a lack of transparency around the security procedures which made it more difficult to call them out for overstepping the mark.

“Being exposed to this on a daily basis is getting difficult, it makes me feel apprehensive and afterwards I think ‘why did I let this happen to me?’,” said the pilot.

“The pat downs involve touching all around the breast and I’ve even had one of the security people rub their knuckles between my breasts, apparently because of the underwire in my bra.”

A survey of 1635 pilots by the Australian Airline Pilots Association this year found 48 per cent frequently encountered issues with airport security screening, and 29 per cent always did.

Procedures at Brisbane, Perth and Canberra Airports were called out as being most out-of-step with other gateways, along with Hobart, Maroochydore, the Gold Coast and Cairns.

Metal wings, pockets and pens are among the items typically worn by pilots that are triggering hypersensitive body scanners.

Another female pilot said she was asked to rub herself up and down from her neck to her waist, as part of explosives detection testing.

“I said ‘I’m not doing that in front of hundreds of passengers I’m about to fly’. So then I was taken into a private area for the process which was a complete waste of time,” she said.

It was not only female pilots uncomfortable with the processes, with male pilots revealing they had on occasion been asked to grab their own crotch, and then have their hands swabbed for explosives.

“Tell me what job requires a pat down and physical contact every single time you go to work,” said one pilot in response to the survey.

“Am I an airline captain or an inmate at a maximum-security prison?”

Qantas response

A Qantas spokeswoman said they were “aware of their pilots’ concerns and had raised the issues with both the relevant airports and the Department of Home Affairs”.

The department is responsible for airport security and the procedures carried out by security workers, but a spokesman said there was no plan to exempt pilots and aircrew or other cohorts from screening requirements or to create trusted traveller arrangements.

“Australia’s policy and legislative framework is to screen all persons, including aircrew, to the same standard to ensure the highest security standards possible,” said the spokesman.

“The Australian government’s expectation is that all persons, including aircrew be treated with dignity and respect during security screening.”

The new body scanner at Coffs Harbour Airport.

It was acknowledged that aircrew were more likely to be subjected to additional screening measures where they have not “fully divested items that may alarm through the body scanner – including epaulettes, badges, wings and aviation security identification cards”.

Trident Services Security, which is responsible for screening at many regional airports said they were not at liberty to discuss procedures.

Body scanners

A spokesman for ISS, which holds the contract for Brisbane and Perth Airports among others, said their teams were trained to follow procedures “consistently and professionally”.

Airports reiterated the Home Affairs statement saying that it was “up to the individual to remove items such as epaulettes, pens, badges and wings”.

Cairns Airport chief executive Richard Barker said body scanning technology offered the “most advanced way to detect prohibited items worn or carried on a person”.

Captain Cornell urged authorities to consider adopting the US model of a “known crew member program” that expedited crew member access to sterile areas of airports.

“The program also reduces congestion in passenger checkpoint screening lines and enhances security for all who depend on air transportation,” he said.

The female pilot said Qantas had offered the option of wearing T-shirts to work, and changing in the flight deck.

“It’s something I’ve considered but I am proud of my uniform, I’m proud of my wings. They mean a lot to me and I don’t think I should have to forego them to prove I’m not a security threat,” she said.

Originally published as Qantas and Virgin pilots slam 'humiliating' airport security pat-downs