WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Transportation Security Administration should close a gaping hole in airport security that allows airline employees across the nation to bypass physical screenings before entering secure areas, U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer said Wednesday.

Schumer, D-N.Y., said the security loophole was exposed last month when authorities in New York City busted a gun smuggling ring that involved current and former Delta Airlines employees.

The employees were charged with smuggling 153 guns on planes between Atlanta and New York City on at least 20 flights from May to December.

Schumer, joined Wednesday in Washington, D.C., by Brooklyn District Attorney Ken Thompson, said the case exposed a loophole that allows airline baggage handlers, cleaning crews and other empolyees to bypass TSA screening checks.

“Why would you screen a pilot or flight attendant, but not somebody who loads luggage or cleans a plane is beyond me,” Schumer said at a press conference today at the Capitol. He said his office conducted a survey that found few airports in the country require screening for those employees.

“To think that all airline employees are not screened each day…is mind boggling,” Schumer said, adding that something is wrong when drugs and guns are “as easy to carry on an airline as a neck pillow.”

Schumer said he asked the TSA to make an employee screening program a national requirement at all airports.

Thompson, the Brooklyn DA, said his investigation exposed a troubling security flaw that could have led to something much worse than gun smuggling.

“A bomb could have easily been placed on any of these planes, just like the guns were,” Thompson told reporters. “It is ridiculous that people can’t get on planes with lotion or even a bottle of water, yet these employees can get on planes with guns in their backpack.”

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