After 9/11, the Feds decided to expand greatly on the Air Marshal program, which had been down to about 50 marshals. But in expanding the system to something close to 6,000 (in many cases at the expense of other federal law enforcement agencies), mismanagement and lowered standards have turned the program into a shambles.
Hiring standards for marshals added since Sept. 11 have been lowered dramatically, sources say. No longer must applicants pass a difficult marksmanship course that used to be the make-or-break test for the program. In addition, many new hires were given guns and badges and put aboard flights before extensive background checks were completed.
At some of the agency’s more than 20 regional offices, the program has struggled to provide ammunition for shooting practice, sources say. Despite the undercover nature of the work, officials have implemented a dress code that marshals worry identifies them to terrorists. And scheduling has been haphazard: While some marshals have not flown for weeks at a time, sources say others are working 12- to 16-hour days and are falling asleep or getting sick aboard flights.
“This used to be an elite, great group. This used to be the baddest people you could find — war heroes,” says one marshal who joined the program just after the terrorist attacks. “Now they’ve turned this into a laughingstock.”
There, now don’t you feel safer?