No one in the whole world likes airport security process or personnel. But the troubled times we live in has made heightened airport security a necessary evil. But that doesn’t mean that an average traveler has to spend an hour or so at airport security every time they take a flight. Here are a few key dos and don’ts to help you speed through airport security.
Dos:
1. Wear shoes that can be easily slipped off and removed and worn back with the same ease. Anything that requires you to spend a few minutes getting it on or zipping/tying it up will cause unnecessary delays.
2. Keep your boarding pass in your hand. Leaving it in your bag might cause you to lose it should you be separated from your belongings temporarily and a passenger with no boarding pass is always marked as being ‘suspicious’ by airport security.
3. Lay your bag onto its side. Keeping it upright gets inaccurate readings and errors and you might be asked to have your bag rescreened.
4. Take metallic objects off before going through the metal detector.
5. Keep cosmetics in transparent carry bags
6. Bring a doctor’s note if you have a hip replacement, plate or a pacemaker. This would help you avoid the embarrassment of being asked to step into the screening area and subjected to a body cavity search.
7. Make sure any beauty products, cosmetics and such are carried on in transparent plastic bags.
Don’ts:
1. Don’t wear clothes with too much metallic detailing. This will trigger metal detectors off and you might even be asked to take that item off.
2. Don’t try to repack your belongings on the conveyer belt.
3. Don’t lose track of your belongings. All unattended items and luggage are confiscated and even destroyed by airport security.
4. Don’t make bomb jokes. If you do, airport security would be well within their rights to detain you, run a thorough background check on you, interrogate you or even ask higher authorities to deal with you if they mark you out as a ‘suspect’.
5. Don’t pack knitting needles, corkscrews, scissors and knives etc in your hand luggage.
6. Don’t refuse to be screened. This will only piss security personnel off and you might be detained for hours or even banned from the airport/air travel for being uncooperative.
7. Don’t pre-wrap any presents as airport security WILL open it as quickly as they can.