The Federal Air Marshals
Back in 2001 there were only 33 federal air marshals (FAMs) across the country.
Because of the 9/11 terrorist acts, President Bush created the TSA in November, 2001.
The FAM service was transferred from the FAA to the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement.
This organization became part of the TSA in October of 2005.
Shortly after, the Federal Air Marshal Service received more than 200,000 FAM applications.
Applicants were screened and those hired were trained and certified.
Today, FAM's are present in flights all over the world.
The actual number of marshals cannot be revealed because it is protected from the public.
FAMs must make split-second life-and-death decisions even at 30,000 feet up in the sky.
They must be able to rely on their training to protect their passengers' lives.
FAM's are not in uniform so they blend in with the travelers.
At the same time, remain aware of their surroundings.
The purpose of the Federal Air Marshal Service is to find and defeat anyone who attempts to commit hostile acts against US air carriers, airports, passengers, and the airplane crew.
FAM's dress and look like travelers so only the flight crew know who they are.
Their assignments are kept secret to discourage hijackings and other incidences on every flight.
Marshals carry a firearm and can make an arrest without a warrant.
They use the least amount of force necessary in order to gain control of the situation and to ensure the safety of the aircraft along with everyone on the plane.
If there is an in-flight emergency such as a rider who has a heart attack, they apply first aid treatment.
Every FAM needs to know several law enforcement techniques along with surveillance, interviews, and questioning suspects.
These marshals make arrests, conduct searches and seizures, and do background checks.
They must also know how to use wireless devices, cameras, and other equipment that must be kept confidential.
Marshals also testify in court and carry out undercover assignments.
Working as an FAM is a very demanding job.
Marshals travel for several weeks at a time, both in the United States and internationally.
This means they work long and irregular hours and are on call 24 hours a day.
They are not always able to keep in touch with their families and their time off can be very limited.
They spend long days alone in airports and on flights.
Traveling around the globe is a major issue FAMs face.
Sometimes they must fly to countries that are unsafe due to political or economical situations.
Other nations have hazardous conditions as poor sanitation and unsafe drinking water.
Those poor guys even fly out to countries of whom we are at war with.
The Federal Air Marshal Service has gone one step further in combating terrorism.
Now they share information through the Surveillance Detection System (SDS) when suspecting and reporting suspicious activity off or onboard.
They report such behavior into a database to be analyzed.
Other law enforcement agencies take this information and study it for patterns of terrorism.
FAMs use SDS information and view other reports on their PDAs.
This is one way FAMs can stop terrorist acts before they happen.
They share all information with others in the federal law enforcement community.
Because of the 9/11 terrorist acts, President Bush created the TSA in November, 2001.
The FAM service was transferred from the FAA to the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement.
This organization became part of the TSA in October of 2005.
Shortly after, the Federal Air Marshal Service received more than 200,000 FAM applications.
Applicants were screened and those hired were trained and certified.
Today, FAM's are present in flights all over the world.
The actual number of marshals cannot be revealed because it is protected from the public.
FAMs must make split-second life-and-death decisions even at 30,000 feet up in the sky.
They must be able to rely on their training to protect their passengers' lives.
FAM's are not in uniform so they blend in with the travelers.
At the same time, remain aware of their surroundings.
The purpose of the Federal Air Marshal Service is to find and defeat anyone who attempts to commit hostile acts against US air carriers, airports, passengers, and the airplane crew.
FAM's dress and look like travelers so only the flight crew know who they are.
Their assignments are kept secret to discourage hijackings and other incidences on every flight.
Marshals carry a firearm and can make an arrest without a warrant.
They use the least amount of force necessary in order to gain control of the situation and to ensure the safety of the aircraft along with everyone on the plane.
If there is an in-flight emergency such as a rider who has a heart attack, they apply first aid treatment.
Every FAM needs to know several law enforcement techniques along with surveillance, interviews, and questioning suspects.
These marshals make arrests, conduct searches and seizures, and do background checks.
They must also know how to use wireless devices, cameras, and other equipment that must be kept confidential.
Marshals also testify in court and carry out undercover assignments.
Working as an FAM is a very demanding job.
Marshals travel for several weeks at a time, both in the United States and internationally.
This means they work long and irregular hours and are on call 24 hours a day.
They are not always able to keep in touch with their families and their time off can be very limited.
They spend long days alone in airports and on flights.
Traveling around the globe is a major issue FAMs face.
Sometimes they must fly to countries that are unsafe due to political or economical situations.
Other nations have hazardous conditions as poor sanitation and unsafe drinking water.
Those poor guys even fly out to countries of whom we are at war with.
The Federal Air Marshal Service has gone one step further in combating terrorism.
Now they share information through the Surveillance Detection System (SDS) when suspecting and reporting suspicious activity off or onboard.
They report such behavior into a database to be analyzed.
Other law enforcement agencies take this information and study it for patterns of terrorism.
FAMs use SDS information and view other reports on their PDAs.
This is one way FAMs can stop terrorist acts before they happen.
They share all information with others in the federal law enforcement community.
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