PHILADELPHIA — Officials from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), Philadelphia International Airport (PHL) and the City of Philadelphia commemorated the 20th anniversary of the federalization of the airport today.
Philadelphia’s airport currently serves the nation’s sixth largest metropolitan area and it launched under TSA security oversight in early September 2002, with a security checkpoint staffed by federal TSA officers one year after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
The Aviation and Transportation Security Act (ATSA) became law in November 2001, establishing the TSA. That fall, TSA consisted of about 100 people working at folding tables in the basement of the Department of Transportation headquarters. Today, 20 years later, there are 430 federalized airports and a workforce of about 60,000 employees nationwide. Approximately 900 TSA employees work at Philadelphia International Airport today and 137 of them have been with the agency for all 20 years.
“From our initial federalization as a TSA airport on September 10, 2002, until the present moment, our TSA team here at Philadelphia has been focused on our mission with the thoughts of those who were murdered by the terrorists 20 years ago, imprinted in our minds,” said Gerardo Spero, TSA’s Federal Security Director. “We are dedicated to our jobs so that there is not another catastrophic 9/11-type of event.”
For the past 20 years, “we have partnered with our federal, state and local partners, which has strengthened our security posture,” Spero added.
Spero pointed out that “in the early days our airport team had no standard operating procedures, no computers and no cell phones. Our busiest day was July 1, 2005, when we screened 54,571 people at our checkpoints. The slowest day for us was on Jan. 23, 2016, when we screened only 160 people when more than 22 inches of snow fell at the airport.”
In the intervening years since launching, TSA has developed and implemented strong security procedures, built a well-trained and highly skilled professional workforce, and introduced a wide array of state-of-the-art technologies to screen passengers, baggage and cargo.
During the past 20 years, “we have met and overcome numerous challenges from the initial start-up to enhancing our security posture and procedures to make the adjustments necessary to address the evolving threats of our adversaries,” Spero said.
He pointed out that the Philadelphia team’s “dedication and perseverance is furthered by the fact that we have 137 employees who have been here at Philadelphia every year for the last 20 years – our entire existence. They are our leaders who serve as role models to our new hires, many of whom were just toddlers on 9/11.”
Guided by an intelligence-based approach, today TSA is at the forefront of security technology and innovation. Technologies such as computed tomography, credential authentication technology and advanced imaging technology have greatly improved TSA’s detection and identity verification capabilities in ways the initial group of TSA employees could have only imagined 20 years ago.