If you’re heading to the airport this weekend, you might want to pack a little extra patience. As of midnight Friday, the Department of Homeland Security is out of money, and that means the people keeping our skies safe are back to working for IOUs. (We discussed the effectiveness of federalized security screeners on Saturday, and we’re still having a great conversation if you want to join.)
A looming government shutdown means the agency could lose its funding as early as this weekend, leaving 61,000 federal screeners to work without a paycheck.
For years, governments have promised a seamless world of airport security where you could leave your laptop in your bag and bring a full-sized bottle of water through the scanner.
Despite what you may have heard, that world isn’t here yet.
Have you started arriving at the airport gate early? Like, way early? Mary Vogel has. For her upcoming flight from Chicago to Paris, she’ll get to the terminal more than three hours before her scheduled departure.
In our hurry to catch the plane — or maybe just to get through our security screening — travelers leave so much behind. Here’s how to protect your valuables when you’re being screened.
For many air travelers, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) screening is the most dreaded part of the journey.
It happened to Andy Lundberg when he was flying recently from Kansas City to Baltimore on Southwest Airlines. A Transportation Security Administration screener pointed him to the PreCheck line, where he waited behind a dozen other frequent travelers with the agency’s trusted traveler designation.
TSA agents are getting ruder, and it’s time to do something about it. So say an increasing number of air travelers, citing their own experiences of being harassed and harangued by the screeners who are supposed to be helping them.
Between passports, passport cards, mobile passports and a constellation of trusted-traveler programs such as Global Entry, Sentri and Nexus, international travelers have a lot to choose from this summer. Chances are, there’s a program that will suit your itinerary and help you avoid long lines when you come home.
When Barbara Leary went through the full-body scanner at Manchester-Boston Regional Airport recently, her hip replacements set off the alarm. She was directed to another line, where she underwent a physical search by a Transportation Security Administration agent.
