Agency Asks Airport Employees And The Public To Report Those Photographing Airplanes

The TSA has launched a new campaign that asks airport employees and members of the public to call police or the federal government if they see someone "suspicious" photographing airplanes.

Photograph Of TSA Poster

The blog welovedc.com provides a picture of the poster distributed to airports. It is part of TSA's "If you see something, say something" campaign.  TSA also produced a video showing a person in a hooded sweatshirt with a long-lens camera standing outside an airport fence.

After news of the poster hit the Internet, TSA posted a statement on its blog that the poster "encourages vigilance," and that it was not intended to criminalize photography. "Some felt this poster didn’t go far enough in distinguishing between general photography and suspicious surveillance activity," the blogger wrote. "These images are simply meant to represent a number of different scenarios that are common in and around GA airfields. In fact, many photographers would be prime candidates to use such vigilance programs to report suspicious activity since they’re extremely observant of their surroundings. TSA works closely with members of the GA community to implement security protocols and programs to ensure the safety of the industry."

Editors note: We're all for vigilance, and we understand that security is everyone's business. However, we'd encourage everyone to use some common sense when it comes to issues such as this. We hope that taking a photograph of an airplane won't at some point result in a photographer winding up in handcuffs.

FMI: www.tsa.gov