As millions of Americans flock to the airport this Thanksgiving, an industry expert warns that the deployment of air marshals at the U.S.-Mexico border could make flights unsafe.
Travel chaos is already in full swing as storms batter the Plains and the Midwest, delaying 3,000 flights leading up to Thursday.
The Transportation Security Administration expects to screen a record 30 million passengers from November 17 to 28.
But to complicate matters further, the aviation sector could face a shortage of air marshals – the undercover counter-terrorism agents – who are being diverted to deal with the migrant crisis at the border.
“We are funneling illegal immigrants across the border and leaving the traveling public unsafe,” Sonya LaBosco, director of the Air Marshal National Council, told FOX News on Tuesday.
A record 30 million people are expected to fly around Thanksgiving (Photo: Passengers crowding a baggage carousel at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport)
Sonya LaBosco, director of the Air Marshal National Council, warns that air marshals are being sent to the US-Mexico border instead of the transportation sector
Travel chaos is already in full swing as storms hit the Plains and Midwest, delaying thousands of flights (Photo: Travelers wait for their flights at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport)
She explained that agents were deployed at the country’s southern border and not in the transportation sector.
These armed and specially trained officers fly disguised as regular passengers and act as law enforcement officers on board.
However, LaBosco claimed that her organization received an email “that resources for our flying air marshals have been depleted.”
She said leaders of federal agencies such as the Department of Homeland Security and its subsidiary, the Transportation Security Administration, are responsible for the shortage.
Those deployed at the border do “no law enforcement duties” and “distribute water,” LaBosco said.
Last October, DHS sought Federal Air Marshal Service volunteers, but when fewer than 150 people signed up, some were assigned.
The following month, more than a dozen officers planned to refuse deployment.
LaBosco blasted U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for insisting the border was secure.
“He won’t call this a crisis,” she said. “But now not only the border has been destabilized, but also our aviation.”
Air marshals fly disguised as regular passengers and act as law enforcement officers on board (Photo: Travelers pass through security at Denver International Airport)
But as millions of people prepare to travel for the holidays, resources are “depleted” when it comes to flying air marshals (Photo: Taxis crowd the roadway at New York City’s LaGuardia Airport)
LaBosco claims agents deployed to the southern border are doing humanitarian work and distributing water instead of their law enforcement duties
Air marshals were largely limited to ‘Quiet Skies missions’ amid the shortage (Photo: Passengers wait to check in at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport)
LaBosco encourages people to look out for exit doors and flight attendants because “you’re kind of on your own” (Photo: Flyers pick up their bags at LaGuardia Airport)
She revealed that air marshals were largely limited to “Quiet Skies missions” due to the shortage.
These operations are aimed at travelers who pose an increased security risk. Lately, this means tracking people that flew into the U.S. Capitol area around the time of the Jan. 6 riots.
“We are at the border for illegal immigrants, or we are tracking people starting in January 2021,” LaBosco said. “So right now you won’t have air marshals on most flights.”
In their absence, she warned, “you’re kind of on your own.”
She encouraged passengers to look for good Samaritans who might be willing to help.
“If something happens, please don’t wait. There will be no police to help you, so you have to have a plan,” she said.
“Look where the exit doors are. Look where the flight attendants are standing around you.”