Gerardo “Jerry” Spero (TSA photo)
Gerardo “Jerry” Spero has been appointed Transportation Security Administration’s (TSA) Federal Security Director (FSD) for Pennsylvania and Delaware, an expansion of his previous role for the last six years as FSD for Philadelphia International Airport and the state of Delaware.
“I’m honored to once again serve locations I supported many years ago and build upon the great work and existing partnerships. I am eager to tour the construction progress for the new Pittsburgh International Airport as it takes shape and is scheduled to open later this year. I’ve visited the new checkpoint in Allentown, which opened just two years ago, and can see the enormous positive impact on both the passenger and workforce experience. I am impressed with the airports within our area of responsibility.
“Most of all, I am eager to have the opportunity to meet with members of the TSA workforce across the state who carry out our most important mission with professionalism and dedication and learn about what is on their minds so I can best support them” he added. “No two airports are alike and although our security procedures are the same everywhere, the working environment is different at each location.”
Spero has 35 years of federal service, initially as a special agent and federal air marshal with the Federal Aviation Administration in the New York City region. While with the FAA, Spero later became a lead agent specializing in hazardous materials and was involved in the investigation of the 1996 Valujet crash, which was caused by mislabeled and improperly stored hazardous materials that ignited in the plane’s cargo hold, resulting in the deaths of all 110 people on board.
As an air marshal, Spero flew missions worldwide and in 1997, he became a supervisory special agent at Philadelphia International Airport (PHL).
Following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, Spero became the first special agent in-charge for the Federal Air Marshal Service’s New York Field Office where he helped launch the organization, receiving recognition for distinguished service from the Secretary of Transportation. In 2004, he returned to PHL as a supervisory inspector leading multi-disciplinary transportation security inspectors and stood up key programs including the TSA Canine Program. After his promotion to assistant FSD for inspections, he received accolades for his work on the 2015 World Meeting of Families and for his work leading TSA’s security team at the 2016 Democratic National Convention.
In 2017, Spero was promoted to deputy FSD, and he led operations at PHL during 2019, a record-breaking year at the airport with more than 33 million travelers, which earned him the 2019 Gold Medal for Management Achievement awarded by the Philadelphia Federal Executive Board.
In December 2019, Spero was appointed as the FSD for PHL Adding to his role as FSD, in August 2021, he was appointed as the Federal Coordinator/Incident Commander for Operations Allies Welcome Philadelphia, and led a multi-agency effort to relocate our Afghan allies, bringing 30,000 Afghans to the U.S. through Philadelphia, for which he and his team received the Department of Homeland Security Secretary’s Exceptional Service Gold Medal Award.