YouTube pilot goes public: Stands by critique of TSA procedures

The airline pilot who posted a series of YouTube videos critical of airport security has gone public with his identity. Appearing yesterday on Sacramento’s ABC affiliate, News10, the 50-year-old pilot introduced himself as Chris Liu and defended his actions:

This might actually stop something that might otherwise have happened this Christmas.

Liu’s federally issued permit to carry a gun in the cockpit gun was revoked and his home searched by federal authorities after his videos went viral. The videos, taken with a cell phone camera and since pulled from YouTube, highlight among other things the irony that flight crews are forced to go undergo TSA screening while ground crews who have direct contact with the aircraft have carte blanche.

Although a federal investigation into Liu’s whistle blowing is ongoing, his attorney is calling for a Congressional inquiry, stating that his client is prepared to testify. The attorney, Don Werno, sent a letter to Rep. Pete Hoekstra Michigan (R-MI), the ranking member of the House Intelligence Committee, telling him his client would be honored to share his insight.

Liu himself has acknowledged feeling overwhelmed by an outpouring of public support for his actions and said he would be eager to become involved in security discussions with federal officials in Washington. It would appear based on the growing number of daily horror stories involving the TSA that a Congressional hearing is overdue.

Following the latest airport security outrage, in which TSA agents arrested and manhandled a rape victim, public discontent with airport screening practices continues to mount. In response, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano has if anything become more entrenched in her position, insisting that the invasive scans and pat downs at the center of the controversy will not disappear any time soon.

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