Air Marshals

[intheaircop]

The air marshal job is one of the best paying federal law enforcement jobs out there. I have never made so much cash in the federal government and at the same time I do little work. No paper work, besides my payroll and travel vouchers. Travel the country on the govt. dollar. I have seen places I would of never seen if it was not for this job. But there is also a bad side. I am also getting very bored. I find myself sometimes wishing some idiot passenger would do something so I could just get out of my seat and finaly do something. I went from taking my cuffs out every day to now having my cuffs rust shut because they have not been used in two years. It is a very boring job but the Pay is great. I am on my second year and I am now a I band(GS13) and that is unheard of in any other agency. But like I said it is not for everyone. Another few years of this I will have to move on and let someone else have my position.

[corporal716]

When I first started an old Deputy told me, " they don't pay you for what you do, they pay you for what you might have to do. "

I sure people are a lot more comfortably just knowing your there.

[DSS1]

Another few years of this I will have to move on and let someone else have my position.

It’s not going to be long before the Air Marshals will be out the door. The Sky Marshal program took off with the development of an anti-air piracy program in October 1969 in Miami. By 1973 the program was dead and all duties were passed on to the FAA. There was no budget then and there’s definitely no budget now. Many local and international flights have no Marshals onboard. It is obvious that even with the reduction of aviation travel there are not enough Marshals to cover most of the local flights today. Even if the program was running 100% before 9/11; the chances of those flights having no Marshals onboard was better then 80%. The security in some small airports is pitiful at best. What good is an Air Marshal if a bomb is placed on the plane and it is detonated in mid-air?

Don’t know guy but you don’t sound like you are an actual Air Marshal. I worked with the Marshal Service down in Campbell KY when I was in CID and those guys kept their duties quiet. You sound as if you were part of an air disco club that’s not getting enough partying put enough pay.

[Oldbillplod]

I find myself sometimes wishing some idiot passenger would do something so I could just get out of my seat and finaly do something.

I think its time for a change of career, dont you

[intheaircop]

DSS1 = Yes I am a FAM. I hate it when people think we are some sort of covert / spies while we are on duty. I do not sugar coat my job and say it like it realy is. We are just plain clothes police officers onboard commercial aircraft. We are there to provide confidence in the commercial airline industry. Prior to 9-11 there was only 33 FAMs and yes those guys were a another story. I am not sure if you are talking about those guys when you stated that you met some FAMs in the past.
"DSS1 don't be a player hater" I have been a FAM since 2002 and am at one of the southeast field offices. I attended the academy in Artesia, N.M. Man it was so hot in the middle of the desert for training. What I thought was cool was that they had 3 commercial aircraft for trainning. I am not going to lie, I thought the training was not any harder then any other police academy. But we sure did shoot alot. I loged about 3,500 rounds through my issued weapon before I graduated. We only lost one guy while I was there because he could not pass the firearms coarse.
I am new to this forum and I do not sugar coat anything. I will not lie and say FAMs are the best law enforcement officers out there because we are not. We are just a little small part of a big family. I guess one good thing about this job is we do not have to see our supervisors / atsaic everyday. I probably only see my supervisor 4 times a month when I have to report to the field office.
DSS1 = Do you think I can do anything about an IED while in flight. FAMs are not there as bomb techs just as we could not fly the plane if the pilot was dead. Also keep in mind that we are not the only arrmed LEOs onboard commercial aircraft. Do you have any idea how many federal agents fly armmed to include border patrol, INS and Customs inspectors. I run into so many LEOs while on duty. I even ran into a OIG AMTRAC agent. I thought she was telling a joke when she told me she investiagates crimes onboard amtrac trains. Oh well, someone has to do it I guess.

[Switchback]

DSS1,
There currently is no connection between the Marshals Service and the FAMs.... DOJ v. Homeland Security. The connection between the 2 was quite brief and, since, the FAMs and USMS are similar only in name.
________________________________________________

The pay is good for FAMs. The pay is high because they are trying to attract good people for a brain-numbingly boring job. Not many people really love that job. Most are there for the money and it is reflected in the personnel. I personally know more than 10 people that left other federal jobs (1811 series, criminal investigators) who quit or are trying to quit the FAMs. It's a tough job. It's great for younger people trying to get their foot in the federal door, those trying to stop the federal clock before they are too old to get hired by other agencies, or those looking for their high 3 salary for retirement.

Another problem, like most agencies, is that you run the gambit in the personnel. It, however, seems to be a bit amplified in the TSA, as they really had to scramble to get people on board. They have some real idiots flying, and they are so short personnel there is little they can do about it. Many guys came out of positions where there was little contact with normal people (not inmates or mexicans rushing the border). That being said, it is not uncommon to have FAMs with very poor people skills... ina job where these skills are absolutely required.

The FAMs used to have one of the tougher firearms courses, but had to dump it when they had a hard timne getting people to pass. Though, I will say that they do a great job on the firearms and DT training. I am very close and often train with a couple of their full-time trainers. Those guys DO have it good. I know they will not hang around if they ever have to go to flying.

Another issue is in the FAM management. A lot of Secret Service guys were chosen for management. It seems that all the management jobs are full of FBI and Secret Service agents. I know that this has caused a lot of grief in the ranks of those actually doing the work... with good reason! Thay often make decisions based on their experience rather than the requirements for the job, such as dress code!!!!

I think the job could be decent, but only time will tell. It's still such a fledgling agency and their are plenty of growing pains yet to be endured. The money is good, but hardly worth it to me. It's a tough job (straining mentally and on the personal life) and not for everyone. IF someone loves it, more power to them!

I'll sooner take my money and look forward to each day of work. People tend to grow accustomed to the pay and just spend it. I don't know too many ways to adjust to a job that I would hate.

[intheaircop]

You are very correct. There are alot of idiots working here and most of them came from the Burea of Prisons. Also correct, they did drop the TPC (tactical pistol coarse) because it was so hard ('I passed it on the 3rd try thank god'). I can't even imagine being here for 20 years. You would have to be a complete moran to stay a flying FAM for 20 years or just lazy. This is the best job if you want to do nothing all day long and get payed for it. I am not that happy with the job anymore but am happy to just have a job. I also hate that all the supervisors are like you said SS guys. They have actualy no clue what happens in the trenches as a flying FAM. Well thanks for the input and you seem to know alot about the agency.

[DSS1]

“I see said the blind man”, I didn’t know that SS agents were put in charged of management.

[cobravenom1]

“I see said the blind man”, I didn’t know that SS agents were put in charged of management.

There are various types of federal and local LEOs that were hired into management positions with the FAMs. As is common with intheaircop, he is misinformed. A large number of initial FAMs were from SSUD, BP, and Customs. BOP was a very small part with most of that contingent being drawn from the SORT cadre.

[Switchback]

USS makes up a great deal of the management, followed by FBI.

[greenlead]

Do they require spelling and grammar courses in the Air Mashal training program? If so, you must've passed with flying colors, especially in the "Simple Words 101" class.

[Toeknee112]

I don't know...I smell something funny...could it be...?

[tomahawk134]

Let me add to the dicussion

The ramp up of the FAM (Federal Air Marshal) program after 9/11, help create alot of changes in Federal Law Enforcement Agencies. The creation of DHS (Department of Homeland Security) has absorbed many of those agencies with new names and missions.

Intheaircop , you and I probably saw one another in the chow hall at FLETC-Artesia. I work for the BIA, Bureau of Indian Affairs, the "original Bureau". We were the group setting the standard and leading the way.

I doubt if the FAM program will go away, I do know many who "originally" went to the FAM program, returned a year later. FAM still have a 40% turn over rate. Many in my agency went to FAM for the upgrade (journeyman level).

TomWoolworth

[DSS1]

We were the group setting the standard and leading the way.

Wait a minute I thought that Rangers were the ones leading the way or like my platoon sergeant used to say “MP’s lead the way every time they wave you in”

About the "original Bureau”, I didn’t know that, gonna do some research, very interesting……….

[tomahawk134]

No need to research, unless the FBI can trace their orgin to before 1869.

TomWoolworth