The terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 changed our world in so many ways, especially Aviation – and 25 years later, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is still adapting airport security to keep us safe.
Last week, Alexandria International Airport announced that it is testing location for Gateside by TSA PreCheck, a new program that allows TSA PreCheck® members and people with Known Traveler Numbers (KTNs) to enter participating airports’ post-security areas without a departing flight. This free authorization is available at select U.S. airports, including Alexandria International Airport (AEX), with additional locations planned in the coming months.
Before 9-11, you could walk beyond the security checkpoint to say goodbye to your loved one – or be there to welcome someone as they exited the airplane tunnel. Gateside by TSA PreCheck expands upon traditional airline gate pass access, which is limited to special circumstances like accompanying a minor, a person with a disability, or a military service member.
With an approved Gateside pass, eligible non-travelers can meet arriving passengers at the gate, accompany departing travelers, or enjoy airport amenities beyond security like restaurants or shopping opportunities. Passes are valid for just one calendar day, with same-day re-entry allowed.
Gateside by TSA PreCheck Eligibility and Instructions
1. To participate, applicants must be TSA PreCheck members or have a KTN.
2. Eligible participants must apply for Gateside by TSA PreCheck online at tsa.gov/gateside one to three days in advance of their visit to the airport. Applicants will need to log in with or create a free Login.gov account to access the application portal. Children may be entered on their parent’s or guardian’s reservation.
3. Upon their arrival at the airport, approved non-travelers will still undergo TSA security screening using an acceptable form of identification.
Visitors should verify their approval status in the portal before arriving and be prepared to show their live portal dashboard via mobile device if requested by a TSA officer. Screenshots or paper printouts of approval status will not be accepted. Learn more about Gateside by TSA PreCheck at tsa.gov/gateside.
Growing up as a kid who fished stock ponds his whole life, I could not wait for the day that I got my first bass boat. Every angler who loves bass fishing looks forward to the day they pull out of a boat dealer towing their first bass boat.
As a new boat owner there are so many things that you must learn on your own. Not many dealers take you out and show you how to launch your boat or go over maintenance tips you need to do yourself.
So much about a bass boat is learned through experience. You learn through trial and error, but hopefully the errors you make don’t cost you a ton of money to fix.
But there was one thing I learned the very first time I took out my new Pro Gator bass boat back in 1992. When you arrive at the dock after fishing, make sure you tie the boat to the dock properly.
It was on Chicot Lake, just north of Ville Platte, where I took it out for the very first time. I was so excited to go fishing in my new boat while learning all the ends and outs about it.
There was one thing that got my attention as I idled away from the boat dock. I noticed on my left, there were several gators sitting on the bank sunning themselves. A couple of these gators were over 10 feet long and looked at me as if I would be their next meal. More on that in just a minute.
After catching a few bass that evening, I decided to stay on the lake until after it got dark, as the bass were really biting just after the sun went down. It was around 9:30 that I headed back to the ramp.
Upon arriving at the boat dock, I tied off my boat (or so I thought). I then headed to my truck so I could back my trailer down the ramp and load my boat. After getting the trailer into the water, I hopped out of the truck and walked down the dock towards my boat. But as I got to the end of the dock, my boat was gone!
Now remember, there’s no one around for help and it’s pitch dark except for the light on the dock itself. So, as I scanned the bay and saw my boat floating about 50 yards out in the bay with its running lights on, panic set in on how I was going to get to it. At the same time, reality also set in and I knew there was only one way to retrieve the boat.
That’s right, I was going to have to swim alligator-infested waters to retrieve my brand-new bass boat. So, I did what any crazy man would do. I stripped down to my underwear and made a running sprint down that long boat dock and dove headfirst into the lake.
Let’s just say that had this been an Olympic swim meet, I would have set a new world record for the 50-meter freestyle. Arriving at the boat and having the fear of a gator pulling me under as I grabbed the side of my boat, I hopped in it quicker than a rabbit jumping over a briar patch.
The moral of the story: always make sure you properly tie your boat to the dock, so you don’t have to make an unnecessary swim. Good luck, good fishing and remember, every time you go fishing, it’s a great trip whether you catch fish or not.
BATON ROUGE, La. – The Louisiana Office of State Parks has launched the Louisiana State Parks Passport, a free program created to encourage families and travelers to visit public lands and historic landmarks across the state.
The passport booklet serves as a travel keepsake for outdoor enthusiasts. Visitors can collect a commemorative stamp at each location they explore. Travelers who visit all 32 state parks and historic sites can submit their completed passports to receive prizes ranging from official state park gear to a free overnight cabin or campsite stay.
“Whether hiking scenic trails, camping under the stars, paddling peaceful waterways, fishing, enjoying family recreation or exploring Louisiana’s historic treasures, this passport makes every stop along the way special. Each passport stamp represents a new destination and a new adventure,” Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser said. “The Louisiana State Parks Passport is a fun way to get explore new places and discover everything our state parks and historic sites have to offer. Grab a passport, get outdoors, and see if you can hit all 32 destinations”
Standard day-use entry fees apply at all participating locations. Passports are free and can be requested online by visiting the Louisiana State Parks Passport webpage.
Football coaches said that in the weight room, usually while we were trying to explain why we needed to sit down. Language professors warned us to use our Greek, Hebrew, Latin, and German daily. My piano teacher said something similar about muscle memory. Apparently, muscles have memories. Mine remember how much they dislike exercise.
I haven’t used it, and I have almost lost it.
I am talking about my handwriting.
I often write notes to members of the congregation. Some are invitations to church events. Others offer encouragement during rocky times. Then there is my special category: “I know where you sit, and I haven’t seen you sitting there for a couple of Sundays.”
If you want your preacher to have trouble tracking your attendance, move around the sanctuary. Of course, convincing a Methodist to change pews may require a greater miracle than anything I am prepared to perform.
I was writing a pile of those notes this week. For every successful note, I threw away two because of mistakes. By the time I finished, I had encouraged six church members and exhausted a small forest.
My handwriting is on the fritz. I know what I intend to write, but somewhere between my brain and my fingers, the message gets translated into a prescription.
When I was growing up, we learned cursive in the third grade. It was a rite of passage. Adults could no longer hide information in that mysterious, looping script. The Christmas gift list was finally readable. Unfortunately, so were the chores.
We spent hours forming those majestic letters. Our teachers expected proper slants, graceful loops, and consistent spacing. My handwriting now looks like a committee reached an agreement on none of those things.
These days, I do most of my writing on a keyboard. The computer straightens my lines, corrects my spelling, and occasionally changes a perfectly good word into something that could end my ministry.
I have neglected a skill I once used every day. Now my fingers need a refresher course.
Where has “use it or lose it” proven true in your life?
Some things grow rusty when we neglect them. That includes the ways we love one another. Patience needs practice, especially with people who give us plenty of opportunities. Compassion grows when we pay attention. Forgiveness takes more exercise than holding a grudge, although a grudge can certainly wear you out.
Jesus calls us to put love into practice: love our neighbors, pray for our enemies, forgive one another, and care for those who are easily overlooked. Those teachings become part of our lives as we follow him in ordinary, sometimes inconvenient moments.
We do not practice our way into earning his love. His love comes first. Then, by his grace, we learn to love as he loves.
So find a church on Sunday. We will be practicing following Jesus together. Then comes Monday, when we discover whether we learned anything. You are welcome to sit beside me. Just don’t ask me to take notes.
The 2023 Spanish-language film Society of the Snow introduced the tragedy to a new generation, emphasizing the relationships, sacrifices, and impossible decisions faced by those stranded in the mountains.
On Oct. 13, 1972, a plane carrying 45 people crashed into the snow-covered Andes Mountains in South America. What followed became one of the most remarkable and disturbing survival stories in aviation history.
For 72 days, a group of young men endured freezing temperatures, starvation, an avalanche, and the devastating realization that rescuers had stopped searching for them. When help finally arrived in December, only 16 people remained alive.
The tragedy, now widely known as the Miracle of the Andes, began when Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 was traveling from Uruguay to Chile. Among those aboard were members of the Old Christians Rugby Club, along with friends, relatives, and crew members. The aircraft was approaching Santiago, Chile, when a navigational error led the pilots to begin descending before clearing the surrounding mountains. The plane struck a mountain, losing both wings and its tail section before the remaining fuselage slid across the snow and came to rest in a remote valley high in the Andes.
Twelve people died in the initial crash, while others succumbed to injuries in the days that followed.
Those who survived found themselves stranded thousands of feet above sea level, surrounded by towering mountains, with little food, inadequate clothing, and no reliable means of communicating with the outside world.
The wrecked aircraft became their shelter.
Passengers used luggage, seat cushions, and pieces of the fuselage to block openings and protect themselves from the bitter cold. With almost no medical supplies, they treated injuries as best they could. Meanwhile, search aircraft flew over the region, but the white wreckage was nearly impossible to distinguish from the surrounding snow. After several days of unsuccessful searching, authorities suspended rescue operations.
The survivors eventually learned through a small radio that the official search had ended.
They were on their own.
As their limited food supplies disappeared, the group faced a decision that would become the most controversial aspect of their survival. With no vegetation or animals available and no other source of nourishment, the survivors eventually resorted to consuming the bodies of those who had died. The decision was not made lightly. Many of the passengers were deeply religious, and the dead included their friends and family members.
Survivors later described the emotional struggle surrounding the decision, explaining that it became a matter of survival rather than choice.
But their ordeal was far from over.
On Oct. 29, an avalanche struck the wreckage while the survivors were sleeping inside, burying the fuselage in snow and killing eight more people. Those who remained alive continued to endure the harsh mountain conditions as the weeks passed. Eventually, they concluded that waiting for rescue was no longer an option.
In December, three survivors — Nando Parrado, Roberto Canessa, and Antonio Vizintín — set out across the mountains in search of help. Equipped with makeshift clothing and a sleeping bag constructed from materials salvaged from the aircraft, the men began an exhausting journey through deep snow and rugged terrain. After several days, Vizintín returned to the crash site so the remaining two could conserve their limited food supplies.
Parrado and Canessa continued, climbing and descending through the mountains until they finally encountered a Chilean herdsman named Sergio Catalán. Their encounter set a rescue operation in motion. On Dec. 22 and 23, helicopters reached the crash site and evacuated the remaining survivors.
After 72 days in one of the world’s most unforgiving environments, 16 people returned home alive. Twenty-nine others had died.
The extraordinary events captured international attention and eventually inspired books, documentaries, and films, including the 1993 movie Alive and the 2023 Spanish-language film Society of the Snow. The latter introduced the tragedy to a new generation, emphasizing the relationships, sacrifices, and impossible decisions faced by those stranded in the mountains.
More than half a century later, the events of Oct. 13, 1972, remain a powerful example of human endurance. What began as a routine flight to a rugby match became a 72-day struggle against starvation, isolation, and death — and a survival story that continues to challenge conventional ideas about the limits of human resilience.
Dr. Kathryn “Kathy” Sullivan wanted to take a walk, but this was no walk around the block. She wanted to take a 140-mile walk. Let me explain. Kathy’s brother Grant had heard about the planned walk, had applied to be a participant, and encouraged Kathy to apply as well. She was uninterested at first because she wanted to take a seven-mile swim in the Pacific Ocean instead. Kathy disregarded Grant’s suggestion until she saw an advertisement for the upcoming walk in a scientific magazine. Shortly after she applied for the walk, William Ryan of Columbia University offered Kathy the chance to take the seven-mile swim that she had been dreaming of for years. William and Kathy discussed the walk and the swim, and they concluded that Kathy should wait to hear if her application to take the walk was accepted. Williams reassured Kathy that she would have another opportunity to take the swim but the opportunity to take the walk would probably never happen again. Kathy’s wait was worth it. She was invited for a week of interviews, psychological examinations, and physical examinations. Of the large group who were chosen, Kathy was one of six females selected. Grant, Kathy’s brother who had encouraged her to apply, was not selected.
The magazine advertisement I mentioned earlier said women could apply, but many scientists believed that women would be unable to complete such a walk because they were inferior to men. Scientists believed women would require more specialized equipment than men to complete such a walk. Of course, those scientists were mostly men. Kathy was fitted with a special pressurized suit which provided oxygen and blocked out the Sun’s rays. Kathy spent years training for the 140-mile walk which would last just a few hours. On October 11, 1984, 33-year-old Kathy dressed carefully in her specialized clothing which weighed more than she did. Then, she stepped out of the vehicle and began her walk. There were no trees, no sidewalks, nor automobiles on her route. Despite the initial doubts of scientists, she completed the walk without any trouble at all. Kathy made history.
Kathy still wanted to take that seven-mile swim, but it took longer than she had imagined. 36 years after Kathy completed her walk, she finally got the opportunity to take that swim in the Pacific Ocean. Just as she had for her walk, Kathy prepared well and used specialized equipment. On June 8, 2020, sixty-eight-year-old Kathy finally fulfilled her dream and completed the swim that she had dreamed of for decades.
Kathy does not consider herself an adrenaline junkie, but a scientist and explorer. You see, the 140 miles I mentioned was not the distance she traveled on her walk, but the height above the Earth she was when she took her walk. On October 11, 1984, Kathryn Sullivan became the first American woman to take a walk…a spacewalk 140 miles up in space. On June 8, 2020, she became the first woman to swim, well… descend, in a submersible to Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench, the deepest known point in Earth’s oceans. Kathy is the only woman known to have both walked in space and visited Challenger Deep.
New, No-Cost Service Allows Non-Travelers to Access Secure Area Without a Flight
ALEXANDRIA– The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is now testing a new program, Gateside by TSA PreCheck, which allows TSA PreCheck® members and individuals with Known Traveler Numbers (KTNs) to access participating airports’ post-security area without a departing flight. This no-cost authorization is now available at select U.S. airports, including Alexandria International Airport (AEX). TSA plans to offer the program at additional airports in the coming months.
Gateside by TSA PreCheck expands upon traditional airline gate pass access, which is limited to special circumstances like accompanying a minor, a person with a disability, or a military service member. With an approved Gateside pass, eligible non-travelers can meet arriving passengers at the gate, accompany departing travelers, or enjoy airport amenities beyond security. Passes are valid for one calendar day, with same-day re-entry allowed.
Gateside by TSA PreCheck Eligibility and Instructions
To participate, applicants must be TSA PreCheck members or have a KTN.
Eligible participants must apply for Gateside by TSA PreCheck online at tsa.gov/gateside one to three days in advance of their visit to the airport. Applicants will need to log in with or create a free Login.gov account to access the application portal. Children may be entered on their parent’s or guardian’s reservation.
Upon their arrival at the airport, approved non-travelers will still undergo TSA security screening using an acceptable form of identification. Visitors should verify their approval status in the portal before arriving and be prepared to show their live portal dashboard via mobile device if requested by a TSA officer. Screenshots or paper printouts of approval status will not be accepted.
Learn more about Gateside by TSA PreCheck at tsa.gov/gateside.
About EEIDD
The England Economic and Industrial Development District (EEIDD) is an independent political subdivision of the State of Louisiana. England Airpark encompasses approximately 4,000 acres and includes Alexandria International Airport (AEX). As a mixed-use development offering convenient connectivity through air, interstate highway, rail, and port access, the Airpark features more than 300 residential units and 1.5 million square feet of commercial space, supporting aviation, transportation, manufacturing, education, and engineering sectors. Learn more at www.englandairpark.org.
Bass fishing is expensive in more ways than one. But one thing is inevitable: you’re going to lose something of value at some point while fishing in a bass boat. It’s like if you’re a motorcycle rider, it’s not if you’re going to have a wreck, but when.
Over my many years of being on the water, I’ve lost several items that I wish I could get back. Today, we all have cell phones as one of our prized possessions. So, it won’t surprise anyone that I have lost one over the side of the boat.
While fishing on Red River early one morning, I had a phone call. Scrambling to get my flip phone out of my pocket, I literally flipped it over the side of the boat and into 15 feet of water.
At first, panic ran through my brain and major anxiety set in as to “what am I going to do now?” After looking at my depth finder and watching my phone fall to the bottom of the river, I knew there was no retrieving this device.
Phoneless and totally out of touch with the rest of the world temporarily, as the day went on it was kind of refreshing and nice to not have a phone, to not be at someone’s beck and call at a moment’s notice. After I accepted the fact that my phone was gone, I actually enjoyed my entire day of fishing with no interruptions!
Another item that every bass fisherman has lost at some point is one of his good rods and reels. Once again, it’s not if you’ll lose a rod and reel, but when. I’ve lost at least three rod and reel combos over the years — two in one day while fishing as a co-angler on Lake Sam Rayburn.
The boater/pro I drew-out, back in 2004, had no rod tie downs on his boat for me to secure my rods. Sam Rayburn is known for high winds, which produce rough rides, and if you don’t have your gear tied down, something will end up in the lake.
That day I had two brand new Bass Pro Shop’s Johnny Morris combos that probably cost $250 each. After making a long rough run across the lake late that day, we stopped to fish. I started counting my rods and realized two were missing. A total of $500 worth of rods and reels were now sitting on the bottom of Sam Rayburn, all because the boat I was in had no rod tie downs!
This past year on Lake of the Pines in East Texas, I was fishing in 5-6 feet of water flipping a boat dock. As I got a bite, I set the hook on a solid four-pound bass. Well, all due to my fault, I had a couple of rods hanging out over the water, and while I was fighting this fish to get him into the boat, my line caught the end of one of my really nice Daiwa combos,valued at $500, and jerked it off the deck and into the lake.
As I was landing the four-pound bass, I made a mental note of where I thought the rod went over. Once the fish was weighed and placed in the live well, I began the search for the Daiwa combo by fan casting the area with a crankbait hoping to snag it. But after wasting 30 minutes of my tournament day, I just gave up on trying to find it.
One other thing that is inevitable while fishing is losing your favorite hat! I can’t even count how many hats I have lost while running across the lake or up the river. Towels are another item that seem to disappear along the way. Some anglers have what they call their “lucky hat” or even their “lucky towel,” and losing either one can cause a full-blown emotional breakdown!
So, as you can see, bass fishing can be an adventure. On top of possible damage to your boat every time you go fishing, there are all these other things that can make your trip expensive. Hopefully, none of this will ever happen to you!
Oh, there is one more thing you can also count on if you’re a bass fisherman; it’s not a matter of if you’ll fall in the lake, but when.
For thousands of years, people on Earth could look up at the Moon but see only one side of it. That changed on Oct. 7, 1959, when a Soviet spacecraft photographed the Moon’s far side for the first time.
The spacecraft, Luna 3, had launched from the Soviet Union just three days earlier. After passing around the Moon, it turned its cameras toward the hemisphere that no human had ever seen. Beginning at 3:30 a.m. Universal Time on Oct. 7, Luna 3 took 29 photographs over about 40 minutes, covering roughly 70% of the Moon’s far side.
What made the mission especially unusual was that Luna 3 essentially carried its own tiny photographic laboratory. The spacecraft used 35mm film, developed and dried the film aboard the probe, then converted the images into electrical signals that were transmitted back to Earth by radio.
The photographs were grainy and streaked, but they revealed something unexpected. The far side looked dramatically different from the familiar side facing Earth. It was heavily cratered and had very few of the large, dark volcanic plains known as maria that are prominent on the near side.
The event also helped correct a common misconception about the so-called “dark side of the Moon.” The far side is not permanently dark; it receives sunlight just like the side visible from Earth. It was simply the side humans had never been able to see directly.
For the first time, on Oct. 7, 1959, humanity got a glimpse of the Moon’s hidden face—and discovered that the side we had never seen was not quite what we expected.
André Citroën was born to Jewish parents in 1878 in Paris, France. Inspired by books by Jules Verne and the three-year construction of the Eiffel Tower when he was a pre-teen, Andre was determined to become an engineer. In 1898, twenty-year-old André graduated from the prestigious École Polytechnique. He worked for the Mors automobile firm for six years, during which time he increased production from 125 cars per year to over 1,200. In July 1919, he founded the Citroën automobile company. By using mass production techniques, he built affordable, reliable cars for the masses and became the Henry Ford of Europe.
From April to October 1925, the Eiffel Tower was the centerpiece of the great Exhibition of Decorative and Industrial Arts. The Eiffel Tower’s chairman of the board offered several companies the right to have their company’s name illuminated in electric lights on the tower for a fee. André accepted and more than 200,000 light bulbs spelled out the name “Citroën.” It was the world’s largest advertising sign at the time, and André’s name was illuminated on the very object that sparked his interest in becoming an engineer. By the early 1930s, Citroën was the fourth largest car manufacturer in the world. André was constantly improving the design, safety, comfort, and most of all, the reliability of his cars. When André died in 1935 of stomach cancer, Pierre Boulanger became Citroën’s vice president and chief of the Engineering and Design department. Two years later, he became president of the company.
Then came World War II. In June 1940, Germany conquered France and occupied Paris. Adolph Hitler celebrated the victory by touring Paris and had his cameraman take a photo of him staring at the Eiffel Tower to use as propaganda. During the occupation, German leaders asked Pierre to have the Citroën factory build military trucks for the war machine and Pierre knew better than to refuse. Pierre had his workers build the trucks as slowly as possible but fast enough to avoid alerting the German overseers. The new Citroën military trucks rolled off the assembly line in perfect working order, but the engines in the Citroën trucks began seizing shortly thereafter. German mechanics disassembled the engines but could find no reason for the engines seizing up. All fluids in the engines were at their proper level and no parts showed excessive wear or damage. They could find no sign of sabotage. Pierre blamed the engine failures on the harsh wartime conditions and on the soldiers for not checking the fluids in the engines regularly. His factory kept building trucks for the Germans at a slow pace. We must remember that the French invented the word sabotage, and Pierre was certainly a saboteur. So, the next time you pull the dipstick out of your car’s engine to check the oil level, maybe you will think of Pierre. For that was his master blow against the German war machine. You see, those Citroën engines which were among the most reliable in Europe kept seizing because Pierre lowered the safe level mark on the dipsticks. It is amazing what a big difference a small alteration can make.
