Documents obtained by the Freedom of Information Act reveal 73 private employees at 40 airports nationwide were flagged for potential ties to terrorism.
Six of those private employees worked at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
The employees were allowed to work there because the Transportation Security Administration did not have access to all the terrorism-related databases, allowing them to get credentials to some secure areas.
Charlie Leocha, chairman of traveler advocacy group Travelers United, says it’s dismaying that all the databases were not linked up, but he doesn’t think those employees posed a safety risk.
The TSA says none of the 73 private employees who received approved credentials are on a terrorist watchlist, and they don’t believe any of them are a threat.
The TSA has now been been given access to all terror-related databases.