There is finally some good news for parents flying commercial airlines with young children. If you are planning to take to the skies during the upcoming holiday season, you will find things a wee bit easier as you make your way through airport security.
Last week, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano announced that kids 12 and younger will no longer be forced to remove their shoes at TSA checkpoints. In addition, Napolitano said that children will not have to suffer through pat downs as often, and those, who get selected for the extra screening, will do so at the hands of TSA agents who are trained specifically to deal with young passengers.
Can I get a Hallelujah!
As a mom, who travels roughly 20,000 miles per year with a youngster in tow, I experience first-hand the stress that comes with navigating through airport security checkpoints. My daughter squealed like a stuck pig the first time I removed her shoes and tried to cajole her to step through the x-ray machine at O’Hare International Airport en route to Honolulu. She was three years old at the time and we were traveling in the dead of winter. She wanted nothing more than to keep her tootsies tucked snuggly in her faux-fur lined boots and off the cold, hard airport floor.
In the end, the TSA agent allowed me to carry her through the machine because the line had grown exponentially while my kid stood frozen at the checkpoint screaming her head off.
Napolitano explained that the change in policy is an effort to employ “risk-based screening” rather than using the same process on everyone who passes through security.
Clearly, the TSA has yet to uncover baby shoe bombers so the Department of Homeland Security is taking steps to amend its screening procedures when it comes to kids.
TSA agents have reportedly been experimenting with new security strategies for children at airports in Atlanta, Boston, Denver, Houston, Miami and Orlando. According to officials, the tests have gone well, and children have been allowed to pass through full-body scanning machines repeatedly (if necessary) if agents see objects they are unsure of.
What’s your reaction to the new changes in airport security?
Related Articles:
Traveling With Children-Learn From My Mistakes
Flying with Children: Layover or Not?
Tips To Remember When Traveling With Children