Kim Kardashian and Kanye West hustled past security checkpoint, cause flight delay

[mountaineer]

Kim Kardashian and Kanye West hustled past security checkpoint at JFK
By PHILIP MESSING, NY Post
February 14, 2013

Two star-struck American Airlines workers at JFK used a secure pass to escort Kanye West and Kim Kardashian around a screening checkpoint — a stunning breach that delayed their fellow passengers by nearly an hour, sources said yesterday.

The Joint Terrorism Task Force — which includes the FBI and the Port Authority PD — has launched an investigation into the VIP treatment of the celebrity couple, sources said yesterday.

The workers, “escorted the two travelers through a non-public area in order to provide expedited access to their domestic flight,” said Transportation Security Administration spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein. She said the favor “violated security protocols by permitting the travelers to bypass the TSA security checkpoint.”

“Kimye” got the unsolicited assist on Tuesday morning as they connected through New York on their way from Rio de Janeiro to Los Angeles.  They had been in Brazil for Carnival, where they partied while West was awarded three Grammys in absentia over the weekend.

When they arrived at JFK, they cleared the customs and baggage areas along with fellow travelers — and that’s when the American Airlines employees offered to help rush them to the gate. The workers are part of American’s Concierge Key program for “select” customers — and were accompanied by an employee of airline contractor Air Serv, sources said.

One of the American employees flashed a SIDA (Secure Identification Display Area) card, which allows access to restricted areas of the airport, the sources said.  The cards are issued to all employees by the airport to help them skip lines and get to their job sites.

Kimye boarded the flight to Los Angeles — but TSA officials got wind of the breach and yanked them off the aircraft at around 7 a.m.

The stars — who are expecting their first child this summer — were then given a private screening in a nearby jetway, contributing to a 50-minute delay of the flight.

“This was a lapse in judgment . . . We’re working closely with the TSA and speaking to the individuals involved to better understand what happened,” said American spokesman Matt Miller.

Sources said that the inconvenienced fellow passengers shouldn’t blame the couple for the delay.

“Nobody thinks the celebrities involved did anything wrong,” the source said, noting they never asked for preferential treatment.

The couple’s reps did not return calls for comment.

Airport rules require all travelers to clear security screening checkpoints before boarding a plane. Port Authority cops are conducting their own probe of the incident, as is the TSA.

[mountaineer]

Kim Kardashian didn’t know she was breaking airline rules because she always flies private: friends
JFK breach no surprise
By TARA PALMERI, PHILIP MESSING and NATALIE O’NEILL
February 15, 2013
NY Post

Airheads Kim and Kanye had no clue they were breaking the rules when they sparked a major security breach at JFK — because they simply aren’t used to traveling with peons.

Kim Kardashian’s preference for private planes — and her ignorance about the rules of flying with the masses — likely caused the security snafu that delayed takeoff by an hour, Kardashian’s friends told The Post.

That’s because the big-bootied socialite is unfamiliar with pesky public-security checkpoints, a pal said.

“Kim normally flies private, so she’s not used to going through security,” said a source, adding a private jet is usually written into her contracts if she travels for business.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if Kim’s security team arranged it privately to avoid all of the chaos” — and two boneheaded VIP service employees at American Airlines complied, the pal added.

Another source close to the couple added Kardashian and her rap-star beau Kanye West felt guilty for making travelers wait on Tuesday, as they were returning from Carnival in Brazil.

“They felt really bad — and they had no idea,” she said.

Two star-struck American Airlines workers used a secure pass to usher Kimye around a screening checkpoint and into a nonpublic area — a stunning breach that prompted airport officials to yank them off the plane.

The stars — who are expecting their first child in July — were then given a private screening in a nearby jetway, contributing to a 50-minute delay.

The ordeal prompted an investigation, and the Port Authority later fingered American Airlines workers Rose Nico-Migovers and Sabria Thomas-Valezs.

They were cited with a “breach of rules” by the agency, a charge that could result in suspension or loss of SIDA (Secure Identification Display Area) privileges, which are issued to employees allowing them to skip lines and get to their jobs on time.

And they’re not the only ones who may have broken the rules, officials said.

The TSA may have also violated standard protocol by not rescreening all passengers once the celebrity couple were hauled off the Los Angeles-bound plane, a veteran law-enforcement officer said.