A growing number of airports make it easy for the non-traveling public to get visitor passes to the secure side of the passenger terminal.

That makes it possible to meet arriving friends and family at the gate or to spend more time with someone before they board a flight.

It also means that you don’t need to be flying somewhere to check out a new terminal, tap your toes to the live music at the airport, see some great art, do a little shopping, or spend time watching planes take off and land.

Each airport has its own name for the service and its own rules regarding how many non-ticketed visitors are allowed to be issued a pass each day they are offered. And at each airport that offers the service, passengers must still go through the security checkpoint.

The list of airports offering this great airport amenity includes:

Seattle Tacoma International Airport (SEA): SEA Visitor Pass Program

The MSY Guest Pass Program at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY),

Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW),

Capital Region International Airport (LAN) in Lansing, MI: the LAN Visitor Pass,

the OC Air Pass at John Wayne Airport (SNA) in Orange County, CA,

and the ONT+ Visitor Pass Program at California’s Ontario International Airport (ONT).

New to the list: Washington’s Tri-Cities Airport

Now more – and smaller – airports are joining the list.

The latest is the Tri-Cities Airport (PSC) in Pasco, WA.

For now, only 10 visitors are able to get a PSC Pass each day. And each visitor may request just one visit per month. But, as with the other airport gate pass programs, it allows non-travelers to surprise an arriving passenger at the gate or send someone off at the gate with a last-minute hug.

Did we miss an airport with a gate pass program? Let us know and we’ll add it to the list.

Thanks for visiting Stuck at the Airport. Subscribe to get daily travel tidbits. And follow me on Twitter at @hbaskas and Instagram.