Last week, I set out to secure my new credentials as a frequent global traveler.  Knowing now what I do about the program, it was truly worth the effort and the $$$…

Back in July 2011, the U.S. Department of Customs and Border Protection (DCBP) opened the “Global Entry” Trusted Traveler Network to all eligible U.S. citizens, in order to help expedite the clearance process for those citizens of the United States who are willing to submit to an extensive background check, be photographed and fingerprinted and pass a secondary interview process.  These travelers are then issued a privileged process of clearing customs and immigration through specially designated lines and ATM-like kiosks using the passport/photo/fingerprint scans to identify the member and clear them through in a more expeditious manner.

It really wasn’t very difficult to do.  And if you travel outside the United States more than 4 times a year, I’d say that the financial investment is worth your money, and definitely your time.

It begin with, you must create an account online at the DCBP website called GOES (Global Online Enrollment System) at https://goes-app.cbp.dhs.gov/main/goes. If you are already registered with NEXUS or SENTRI, please follow the links on that page for further information on transferring your registration to the GOES system for admittance into the Global Entry program.

Keep in mind that by applying for this service, you will be subjected to a thorough 10-yearbackground check.  You will be asked what countries you visited for business and/or pleasure over the last 10 years and approximate date you were there.  If you hold dual citizenship or have multiple passports, you MUST include all of these documents in your application.  You will be asked to submit payment to the DCBP of $100.00 USD which is NON-REFUNDABLE (be very mindful of this fact: if your application is rejected for an incomplete application, or incorrect information, or for any other reason, you will have to reapply to the program and submit ANOTHER $100.00).  Your application and membership in the program is valid for five (5) years from the date of your acceptance in the program.

Also, be mindful that if you have ever been convicted of a felony here in the U.S. or abroad, have been fined in the past by the U.S. Customs for violations of any type, or have any other discrepancies in your record that would flag the system, your application will be rejected and you will forfeit your application fee.

Once your application and fee has been received, the DCBP will take upwards of four weeks to process your information and perform your background check.  Upon completion of this procedure, you will receive a letter (usually in e-mail form) either congratulating the acceptance of your information or you will be notified of your rejection from the program.  Those who are accepted to the program must then return to the GOES system and schedule an appointment for a one-on-one interview with a DCBP officer.  There are approximately 20-25 locations that you can schedule your appointment.  You must schedule the appointment within 30 days of the date of your acceptance letter or forfeit your application and fee.

During the interview, you will view a video prepared by the DCBP that explains in complete details how the program works and the procedure for using the Global Entry kiosks at the airport.  Afterwards, you will be asked a series of questions regarding your past, your travel, your employment and be asked to review any items on your application that the DCBP officer deems necessary to continue.

Once your interview has been completed to the satisfaction of your DCBP officer, you will be photographed and fingerprinted.  Afterwards, a special sticker is attached to the inside of your passport and you are then instructed on the next steps.  Basically, you will receive a letter in the mail confirming your completion and acceptance into the program.  If you have any specific questions about the program or the procedures, the interview is the best time to ask.

As an added bonus, currently the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has begun the “Trusted Traveler” program at several major airports around the country, and will be rolled out to all airports as the program is fully developed.  Successful applicants of the Global Entry program are currently automatically accepted into this program and you will receive a special credit-card sized card with sensitive electronics built into it (much like your passport) and a protective sleeve to store it in.  This card will grant you access to the special express lines at participating airports to get through security, and allow you the ability to get through the screening process without having to remove your shoes, jackets or separate your laptop from your carry-on luggage, thus expediting getting you to your scheduled flight.

Keep in mind that, as with all security programs, you are ALWAYS subject to secondary search and screening at any time, so while you will save a lot of time and headaches most of the time, there will be times when you are required to these additional searches.  Failure to comply with these requests, or discovery of your violation of any customs or immigration rules or regulations will subject you to fines, and/or imprisonment and most certainly automatic dismissal from the program without the ability to regain entry.

For further information about this program, contact the DCBP at their website at www.cbp.gov or www.dhs.gov.

Before I begin this entry, I want to state for the record that my desire to post this doesn’t come from some inner need to have a spotlight pointed on me.  I realize that there are countless memorials and accounts of the attacks of September 11, 2001.  I wish not for this entry to be considered more important, or more poignant than those who were directly effected by the loss of a loved one or someone close to them on that fateful day.  I only hope that sharing my experiences of that day and the days that followed will serve as a testament to honor the fallen and the brave souls who fought to stop what was happening…

My recollection of those events actually began late in the evening of September 10, 2001.  My partner and I had just wrapped up a family visit on vacation, and we were heading back to New York City, where we were both stationed at our airline.  Our flight to La Guardia was the last of the night, coming from Denver.  Strangely, there were very few passengers on our flight that evening and we found ourselves occupying our own rows, one directly behind the other.

When we made our decent into the NYC area, the captain informed us that we’d be coming into LGA on a direct heading, and that anyone on the left-side of the airplane would have a perfect view of Manhattan as we landed.  We moved over to the windows to watch the spectacle that is always New York City at night, and that night was no exception.

We passed over the Statue of Liberty and then made our way past the twin monoliths of the World Trade Center.  As we passed by, I recall the conversation I had with my partner:  how we had lived in the area for four years up to then, and had still never made it to the observation deck of the Twin Towers.  I remember making sort of a pact that we would make an attempt to visit that vantage point in the very near future.  It was that last time he and I ever saw those buildings intact…

We lived in Richmond Hill, which is a small suburb of Queens, approximately 9 miles (as the crow flies) from the WTC.  Sometimes, on a good, clear day, you could make out the silhouette of the Towers from the elevated train, just a block from our building.  It was always fun to see them jutting out from the horizon, and we often commented on how far apart they were from the Empire State Building, something you could definitely make out from the La Guardia Airport.

We had gone to bed late that night since our arrival was just before midnight, and it was nearly 1:30 a.m. before we found ourselves nestled into our bed, with our two cats lying across us on top of the covers.  We both fell sound asleep and what we dreamt of that night, I’ll never know…

Our slumber was rudely awakened to the obnoxious sound of the house phone, ringing impatiently.  I got up to answer the call and my younger sister was on the other end of the line, panicked.  Since I was still trying to shake the sleep from my brain, I didn’t quite grasp what she was so upset over.  “I am soooo glad you picked up!  Are you watching the news?”

“No…are you crazy?  I just woke up!”

“Go turn on your TV!!!  NOW!”

Reluctantly, I walked into the living room and turned my set on…I have been a news junky all of my life, so not surprisingly, the television was already tuned to CNN.  There on the screen sat the WTC, with smoke billowing from one of the towers.  I didn’t know what to make of it.

“Wow, that looks like quite a fire,” I said to her.

“The news says they think an airplane crashed into it!  That’s why I was calling you to see if you two were okay!” she replied.

“Well, yeah, we just got in late last night.  What makes them think this is a commercial jet?”

“That’s just what they were saying…that’s all I know.  I’m gonna hang up now…I’ll let mom and dad know you guys are alright, ok?”

“Sure,” I said and unconsciously hung up the phone.  I quickly went back into the bedroom and awakened my partner.  “Hey, you need to come take a look at this.  The news is reporting that a commercial jet crashed into the World Trade Center!”  A muffled “huh?” is what I got in return as I headed back into the living room to watch the events unfold.

As I listened to the ‘talking heads’ make commentary and speculation about what had happened, and as my other half walked into the room to see what I was yammering on about, it happened.  The most horrific thing I had ever witnessed up to that point in my life, and the moment everything in our lives changed.  We sat in silent horror as we watched the end of United Airlines Flight 175 disintegrate into the side of #2 World Trade Center.

A sudden numbness fell upon me.  At that very moment, I found myself in a state of suspended animation…I know what I saw, but my brain wasn’t processing it the way it should have.  All I could do was hold myself and listen to the continuing conjecture and supposition that the news anchors were spewing, constantly updating and trying to disseminate information as the event unfolded and as news reporters around the area were checking in.

Within minutes of the attacks, the video of the crashes were being repeated over and again, each time the images burning hurtful and damaging memories into my subconscious.  As reports of an additional plane being crashed into the Pentagon and  a fourth one missing and presumed lost in the lower part of Pennsylvania came in, I felt paralyzed…I wouldn’t move and I couldn’t either…I was a dry sponge, absorbing every tidbit and scrap of new information that came over the air.

Before long, the FAA reported that all planes in U.S. airspace were being grounded.  There were planes coming in from Asia and Europe that were diverted to various airports in Canada.  Later, the word came down that all airline traffic was suspended for five days until these things could be sorted out.  My partner and I were scheduled to fly during those days…we were told to stay home.

Later in the afternoon, the telephone rang again.  This time, it was an unexpected and worrisome call:  it was my nine year old son, calling from California.  He was crying and yet happy that he had finally been able to reach me on the phone.  He said that he had been trying for hours to get through, but the phone systems across the country were jammed.  It felt good to reassure him that I was okay and that he and his younger sister could rest easy this night, knowing that daddy was home and safe.  Many others would not have the same fate as I that night.

For three solid days and nights, I sat electrified to the couch, eating very little and saying very little.  One peculiar thing happened during this time at home.  A year earlier, we had adopted a Short-haired domestic grey Tabby cat named Chloe.  It was evident early on that she suffered from anxiety and separation issues, and that she had been somehow abused as a kitten.  Afraid of her own shadow, she would rarely sit in a lap, or nuzzle up close to either of us.  On the afternoon of Sept. 11th, however, she started doing something she had never done before, but to this day, she still does:  she hopped up onto my partner’s lap and began to nuzzle and ‘paw dance’ on his arm, purring deeply.  Amazingly, 9-11 affected even our cat!

Near the end of the third day of non-stop news coverage, the flood gates opened in my mind.  I suddenly turned off the TV and began sobbing; my body heaved with fear and sorrow and I couldn’t control the tears.  The reality of a life-changing event crashed down upon and around me and I had trouble breathing…it was like this never before experienced anxiety swept over me and I, for the very first time in my life, felt real fear.

On the fifth day following the attacks on the US, I was asked to work a flight to London out of JFK…the first one to London my airline was able to operate after the events that shut down our nation’s transportation system.  It had been difficult for the airline to find crew members who were willing to fly then, but somehow, I mustered up the courage to say ‘yes’ and I headed to the airport.

The flight over was surreal.  The passengers were quiet and somber.  Many wept the entire flight.  I found myself handing out tissues all across the Atlantic, and I caught myself weeping in the lavatory on several occasions, not wanting my passengers to feel any further anxiety than they already had.  The flight attendants performed there duties, albeit we were staffed at the minimum allowed by the FAA because no one else was emotionally ready to return to work.  Meal services went by rapidly, and many refused to eat as most had lost their appetites.

When I arrived at Heathrow, I was met by an airline supervisor, who was desperate to find crew members willing to work the flight the next day to San Francisco.  I said ‘yes’ without hesitating, but I knew that I was doing so without thought or consideration of my own fears and anxieties.  I was literally mentally numb and it would take months to fully get back to my typical, jovial self on board the airplane.

That first trip back on the line ended up stretching into a seven-day stint for me, flying back and forth between LHR and SFO with minimum rest in-between flights, the airlines were all so desperate to get people where they needed to be.  The time past like a flash to me; somehow I just really don’t remember much of the trip or the crew I worked with at all.

In the weeks that followed, I worked on flights that brought in fire fighters, policemen and Search & Rescue teams from around the world to New York City.  I’ll never forget the day I worked the flight from Los Angeles to JFK when the fire brigade from Disneyland came to New York to help in the rescue efforts.  The leader of the group honored my crew with tee-shirts and lapel pins of Mickey Mouse in a fireman’s outfit with a crash axe in hand, the official pin of the Disneyland Fire Department.  In honor of all the volunteers who helped during those trying and extremely difficult days that followed, I continue to wear “Mickey in Uniform” on my own flight attendant uniform.

Tomorrow, it will have been ten years since the nightmare began.  I will never be able to relate to those who perished on the four flights of 9-11-01 nor can I comprehend the sense of loss that those who lost anyone in the Trade Center or the Pentagon or Shanksville, including the police, firemen, search & rescue volunteers and even the cadaver dogs.

As the coverage on this event ramp up, I’m sure that many of the old feelings will return.  As an example, the NBC Nightly News reported a couple of days ago that the audio tapes from the emergency 911 calls and the air traffic controller audio tapes had just been released and they played some of that audio on the news.  A chill went down my spine and I could feel a sickness develop in my stomach again.  Had the report lasted a further 30 seconds, I would have turned off the television.  To this day, I have never been able to watch the film “United 93″ and I doubt I ever will.

There are events which are so pivotal, that we humans tend to reference our timelines by them: Where were you when Kennedy was shot?  Do you remember watching the first man on the moon?  What were you doing when Challenger exploded?  It’s common for us to do this.

For me, none of those events carved out such a deep knotch and such a deep emptiness like 9-11 did.  For many of you, I’m sure you feel the same.

My career was changed forever too.  Every year, new regulations, new restrictions and new warnings are passed down the pipeline for us.  We may never have the luxury of relaxed airline travel again, and perhaps an event such as this one should prevent us from letting our guard down, even for a second at this juncture.  As long as man continues to hate his fellow man, and use fear and death as a weapon against each other, our lives will never really find relief.

And that is something I wish we could all remember, and forget…

Today was an extremely difficult day for me and my crew.

There seems to be an affinity between airline personnel and the military.  Many times, during a large deployment somewhere in the world, the military lacks the air power to transport all the personnel and equipment necessary, so the Armed Forces turns to the civil air carriers to take up the slack.  In airline lingo, they are known as MAC flights (Military Air Charters).

That relationship was galvanized after 9/11.  Over time, I have seen the young men and women in their camouflage uniforms come and go to their destinations–some going for their fifth or sixth tour of duty, perhaps others who will never return.  It is a gut-wrenching feeling to come to that realization, yet somehow, we civilians subconsciously separate ourselves from that reality and it gives us some convoluted peace of heart.

Many airline workers are former and currently-serving military personnel.  There is a camaraderie that lies, just underneath the skin of airline people that keeps our spirits uplifted, knowing that these brave souls are willing to pay the ultimate toll to defend the freedoms and basic human rights that this country was founded upon.  It is an all-volunteer force that has answered the call to arms and are given the mantle of protectors of the greatest experiment of human democracy.

I know and understand a little of what their families must feel and go through.  During the Vietnam Conflict, my Marine Corps father had served several tours of duty in the Pacific Rim.  His calling in the Corps never did require him to the shores of East-Indo China or Southeast Asia, but nevertheless, just his being away during that skirmish was enough to feel relief when we were allowed an occasional treat getting to speak with dad over the HAM radio, trying to remember to say “over” through our tears and missing him terribly.

As I mentioned in an earlier posting, 9/11/01 is now past eight and a half years.  Those wounds will never fully heal, especially to those in the airline industry.  The scar is deep and horrific for us and some of us wear it close to the surface, some prominently on our sleeves.  So it takes very little prompting to bring a gusher of emotion, completely exposed and wondering if the sacrifice being made isn’t too great, the price too high or the cost to our military families unrecoverable.

To me, the answer still remains “NO” but as these two wars on the other side of the world continue to drone on, my heart feels ever more scarred from the losses.  I will never lose my faith and trust in our military’s mission and their abilities…we military brats come from tempered steel, forged by our family’s devotion to God, Country and Honor.  But every man has a breaking point and I wonder what my limit is.

Today, on Valentines Day, as I returned to my home base, I was saddened to learn that a young mother, with her 2-year old son in tow, and mother at her side, was traveling with us today who had just lost her husband in combat in Pakistan.  Our customer service representatives removed them from our economy cabin and lovingly offered them seats in our first class.  As I introduced myself to them both, I could feel that awful, choking feeling in the bottom of my throat and I struggled to clear my mind and find any sort of words of comfort that could express those feelings.  “From the depths of my soul, I want to thank you for your sacrifice, and I hope that your journey with us will help you find a little solace and comfort for a few hours.”

The young mother looked as though hours of tears had eroded lines into her beautiful visage, yet I could tell she was trying desperately to be strong for her son, who could not possibly comprehend the loss he had just been dealt.  As I shared the situation with my galley assistant, I could see the pain wash over her face and she later told me that she found the tears welling up within her, almost uncontrollably and inexplicably.  “I don’t know why I am so emotional over this, I just can’t control for some reason.”

I knew what it was.  It went right back to those awful images that are forever seared in our minds as maniacal religious extremists took control of four U.S. flagged airliners and instantly transformed them into weapons; weapons that would unleash such chaos as has probably never been witnessed upon this land before.  All in the name of a god and religion that few of us had ever before heard about nor understood.  It was the pain of loss of a way of life that we shall never see again, where freedom is now tempered with suspicion and questioning.

My galley flight attendant found herself drawn to this young family and tears flowed again as we discovered that she was now expecting their second child in a few months.  The angst we felt for these people was almost unbearable for us and we felt compelled to reach out to them and make them a part of our family.

In reality, they ARE part of our family.  The continued and sustained loss of life that our soldiers and their families are taking, with little or no complaint, falls hard upon my psyche and gives me pause to find solace in the knowledge that their sacrifices are not in vain.

And ever since those great men and women have gone to the farthest reaches to maintain our freedoms, I NEVER pass up a moment, one by one, to thank them all for their service–in person, out loud and without fear…THAT is MY duty!

God bless the men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces.

As I was going through my TiVo programs, trying to get caught up on Idol, Vampire Diaries and Project Runway, I caught a little snippet of a news report from a few days ago. And it sent a chill down my spine…but…

This country has been on high alert for terrorists infiltrating this country since 9/11/01. That’s eight and a half years of keeping our “ear to the ground” (so to speak) and trying to remain vigilant. The saddest part of all of this is that the American people, as diverse and proud as we are about our country, have a really bad case of ADHD when it comes to this stuff. It’s very easy for them to become complacent and get themselves into the mode of “my government will protect me” and just move on with their lives.

The problem with that is that those whose sole mission it is to destroy our way of life, those who hate our culture and our government, our excesses and gluttony, our success and our dominance on the world stage, do NOT have a short memory and they have, over time, begun to use the very tools and technology that our own country has developed and cultivated against us.

Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) and U.S. intelligence expert Leon Panetta

According to the experts, it’s just a matter of time — and that was the gist of the news report that I saw — before the terrorists are causing havoc and mass destruction within our borders again, and in light of these recent events, they are saying that just such an attack is imminent within the next THREE to SIX MONTHS!

The TOP intelligence agencies have all reported to Congress in the past several days that Al-Qaeda and it’s operatives have begun recruiting rogue Americans to carry out their desires for the destruction of the United States, our economy and our freedom — to bring us to our knees, because in their eyes, we deserve it and we — the Infidels — must be punished.

Now, I don’t want to sound like Chicken Little here (“The Sky is Falling!”), but as an airline safety professional, my “guard” has been up since the 9/11 attacks. I have no choice and I have no tolerance for those who wish to believe that it can’t happen again. It almost did on Christmas Day, for goodness sakes! And I have no idea why our Intelligence leaders would mislead the American public on so serious an issue as this.

Attempted terrorist aprehended on Christmas Day Delta flight

The fact of the matter (in my own mind) is that these terrorists are testing the system EVERY DAY. I’m not a suspicious person, but I also can’t afford not to keep alert whenever I step on that aircraft. I get that the average traveler isn’t thinking about that at all. But if the bad guys are successful in bringing down another passenger jet in the name of their god, I know that once again, the flying public’s guard will be heightened and aroused.

I might sleep a little better knowing that we can prevent it every time it’s attempted rather than live through another 9/11 morning. I’m not giving up on America and the freedom and way-of-life that I am privileged to have. But I still believe it is a gift to be cherished. If we don’t protect it, someone is always out there to take it from us.

Let’s hope it never comes to that…