Passengers checking in for a flight at Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport might encounter David Jimentel at the X-ray machine. The former Marine says he was inspired to join the Transportation Security Administration after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.
Others might notice Maria Little, one of the agency's behavioral detection officers, casually interacting with travelers as she uses a trained eye to spot potential risks. She lived all over the world with her husband during his military career and wanted a chance to serve the country herself in the wake of the attacks.
Together, the Marylanders are part of a team of nearly 600 TSA officers who screened 9 million passengers at BWI last year. They monitor the behavior of travelers waiting in line to enter the terminal, screen checked baggage for banned items such as fireworks and lighter fluid, and use X-ray machines to examine carry-on bags for guns, brass knuckles and razor blades.
"We really, really try to do a good job making sure that everyone is safe," said Little, of Hanover. "I wanted to step up to the challenge and try to support the country, like my husband did when he was in the Marine Corps."
Little's shift starts at 4:30 a.m., when she and other behavioral detection officers meet to discuss what they can expect from passengers that day. If the weather is bad and flights are canceled or delayed, for instance, travelers might be more agitated than usual.
After that discussion, she'll go to her checkpoint station with a partner or two. The officers watch passengers for signs that they might be up to no good.
"If it's 85 degrees outside and someone comes inside and is wearing a trench coat, sweating profusely, that would be out of the norm when everyone else is in shorts," she said.
The officers also test passengers as they wait in line. One officer will walk along the queue and strike up casual conversations with travelers. A colleague watches to see whether anyone in the line shows signs of being anxious at the prospect of being approached by the officer.
When officers spot a potential threat, Little said, they can require the passenger to go through an additional screening process, including a thorough examination of bags.
If they find nothing, the passenger can proceed. If not, Little said, the TSA calls the Maryland Transportation Authority Police to take over. TSA officers do not carry guns and have no arrest powers.
"We'll try to get at the bottom of why you're acting the way you're acting," Little said. "A lot of times, it's understandable. Suppose they had a 5 o'clock or 6 o'clock flight and they woke up a little late. If that's the case, then that's fine."
The Government Accountability Office has questioned the effectiveness of the behavioral detection officers. The GAO reported in 2013 that "peer-reviewed, published research ... did not support whether nonverbal behavioral indicators can be used to reliably identify deception," and recommended that the TSA limit funding for the activity.
The agency defends the use of behavior detection officers: They are "one of several layers of security that we utilize," spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein said. She said the officers screen passengers, looking for signs of involuntary physical and physiological reactions.
The TSA found more than 2,200 guns at U.S. airports last year, including 14 at BWI. Among those seized at BWI was a loaded pistol a woman had stowed in her carry-on bag with more than a dozen loose bullets.
Farbstein said TSA officers detected about 1.5 tons of prohibited items at BWI in 2014.
In 2002, BWI became the first airport in the country to have a fully federalized security force. After the TSA was created, the agency selected BWI to test new equipment and screening techniques.
Jimentel, a checkpoint supervisor who joined the TSA about a decade ago, has seen some interesting items.
Once, a box inside a man's bag was showing "a really odd-looking" color, so he asked the passenger to show him what was inside. It was a collection of moon rocks brought back by the Apollo 11 astronauts. The man said he was transporting the rocks from one museum to another, Jimentel said.
He also has helped intercept weapons, including pistols, stun guns and expandable batons.
When an officer spots a weapon at the checkpoint, Jimentel said, he or she discreetly calls for a law enforcement officer.
The most common reason people give for packing a weapon in a carry-on is that they forgot it was there, Farbstein said. The second: Their spouse packed the bag for them.
"Once there's a gun, it becomes a police matter," she said.
The shooting death of a TSA officer at Los Angeles International Airport in November 2013 has fueled a debate over whether officers should be armed. The suspect is alleged to have targeted TSA officers. TSA Officer Gerardo Hernandez was killed; two other officers and a bystander were wounded.
Jimentel said he does not worry about his safety on the job.
"In the extreme, we have passengers who, if they are really upset — and no matter how you try to calm them down — get even angrier and angrier," said Jimentel, of Parkville. "It's situations like that that we have to get [the police] involved."
Lisa Connor, a supervisor, helps screen the checked bags that roll on conveyor belts from the airline ticketing booths to the planes.
"One time I said, 'I think I've seen everything except the kitchen sink,'" Connor said. "And then I got a kitchen sink and I was like, 'Now I've seen it all.'"
Once a bag is checked, it passes through X-ray machines. TSA officers can screen 3-D images of the contents. If an officer spots a banned item or can't figure out what something is, the conveyor belt can open up to divert the bag to a room where TSA officers are ready to look more closely.
When they find prohibited items, the TSA calls the airline, which removes the item from the bag. If necessary, law enforcement can be called in.
"There is a lot of food in bags," said Connor, of Millersville. "People carry a lot of food, a lot of Nutella. I don't know what it is about Nutella, but people really like it."
Food, including the hazelnut spread, isn't a problem. Farbstein said she doesn't know whether Nutella is any more popular in Baltimore than elsewhere, but she said TSA workers around the country report seeing certain products based on the regions they live in. In Boston, for example, the officers see cans and cans of baked beans; elsewhere in New England, they report lots of maple syrup.
"Passengers don't have access to their [checked] bags [during a flight], so you're thinking about things that could harm the plane that don't require human intervention," Connor said. "Something flammable that will catch on fire, or something that will explode, like fireworks."
Connor said she enjoys her job because her everyday responsibilities are closely tied to protecting Americans.
"I was directly affected by 9-11; I was angry," Connor said. "I answered the call. I just said, 'This isn't going to happen again, not on my watch.'"
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By the numbers
The Transportation Security Administration has screened passengers and their luggage at BWI since 2002.
2,212: Number of guns the TSA recovered from U.S. airports in 2014, including 14 at BWI.
1.5 tons: Weight of banned items detected by TSA officials at BWI in 2014.
24th: BWI's ranking among the country's 400 airports in the number of passengers screened by TSA officials.
$25,773-$38,660: Salary range for TSA officer.
Source: Transportation Security Administration