For many years, most airports around the world have had strict requirements for liquids, gels and aerosols taken on board flights. While some airports' policies may vary slightly, Heathrow, for example has the following rules (which are the same for…
TSA Pre-Check is one of the innovations that has made the air travel experience in the US a bit more pleasant. Those eligible for Pre-Check enjoy expedited security screening, where they don't have to take off their shoes, or take their liquids out of…
This is quite disturbing, though I guess not surprising, since there will always be greedy people out there. There are quite a few airline employees who use their security clearance to smuggle drugs. It's only natural that some people would be willing…
The two innovations of the past several years that have made the US travel experience substantially more pleasant have been TSA Pre-Check and Global Entry. As a reminder, TSA Pre-Check allows eligible travelers expedited security screening, where they…
Orlando International Airport plans to vote on whether or not they should privatize their airport security during a meeting later this month. The airport has seen a lot of growth the past few years, and is now ranked as Florida's busiest airport, and…
The two innovations of the past several years that have made the US travel experience substantially more pleasant have been TSA Pre-Check and Global Entry. As a reminder, TSA Pre-Check allows eligible travelers expedited security screening, where they…
I first wrote about Marilyn Hartman, also known as the "serial stowaway," in 2014. At this point she has been found trespassing at airports dozens of times. Often she has successfully managed to get past security and even board flights without tickets,…
Yesterday was quite an eventful day at Newark Airport. First ex-governor Chris Christie made the news for being denied access to the VIP entrance at Newark Airport, though that isn't the only eventful thing that allegedly happened at the airport yesterday.…
Ugh, don't you just hate when you accidentally pack a gun in your lunch box when going to work? CBS Boston is reporting how a TSA agent at Manchester-Boston Regional Airport packed a gun in his/her lunchbox last Friday. This was only discovered when…
Yesterday my trip to Israel came to an end, and I flew EL AL first class from Tel Aviv to London. I'll have more on that very interesting flight shortly, but in the meantime I wanted to share my experience with security at Ben Gurion Airport, which is…
Yesterday I shared my experience flying EL AL's new 787 from Newark to Tel Aviv, which was a pleasant surprise. One of the things I was most apprehensive about was how the security screening process would be. I wasn't worried because I have anything…
I have a lot of respect for air traffic controllers and what they do to keep our skies safe, and tend to think that there are "bad apples" in every industry. So while the fact that he's an air traffic controller may only be tangentially related to what…
It continues to blow my mind how ineffective the TSA is. Back in 2015, the TSA failed 67 of 70 tests that were conducted around the nation, which involved undercover officers smuggling banned items through security. That's right, they have a ~95% failure…
The two innovations of the past several years that have made the US travel experience substantially more pleasant have been TSA Pre-Check and Global Entry. As a reminder, TSA Pre-Check allows eligible travelers expedited security screening, where they…
In late June we first learned about new security measures being introduced for US-bound international flights. With the increased risk of terrorism to aviation, the government wants to do more to prevent it (well, other than actually have a professional…
Airports are always preparing for the "worst case scenario," though typically the preparation happens behind the scenes. Well, in the case of Singapore Changi Airport they did a simulated terrorist attack training exercise early this morning, and it's…
In July I signed up for CLEAR, which I've fallen in love you, and find to be well worth the membership cost. Just for being a SkyMiles member you can get a membership for $99 per year, and you can add family members for $50 each, so it's quite a deal.…
Just under two month ago I signed up for CLEAR, which lets you bypass the ID check at many airports around the country. If you haven't yet read my previous post about CLEAR, I'd recommend checking that out first. Instead of lining up to have your ID…
9/11 prompted a lot of changes to the airport experience. One of those changes was that only ticketed passengers could clear security in the US, meaning that it's generally no longer possible to clear security if you don't have an outbound boarding pass.…
In March the US implemented an electronics ban for flights from select Middle Eastern countries to the US. Under this ban, passengers had to check electronic devices other than phones into the cargo holds of planes. This whole thing seemed pretty poorly…
I'm not a fan of the TSA, and generally don't give them the benefit of the doubt, given their track record. However, this is a situation I'm a bit skeptical of, to put it mildly. NBC 5 Chicago shares the story of a man who claims that he had such an…
