TSA

No Real ID? TSA will charge $45 per trip to verify you

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A few weeks ago, the Transportation Security Admnistration announced in the Federal Register that it would be setting up a verification program for passengers who show up at the TSA checkpoint without a Real ID, passport or some other acceptable form of identification.

To cover the costs of the alt-ID program, which is set to roll out on February 1, 2026, the agency said it would charge passengers an $18 fee for the service. The fee will non-refundable, even if verification is unsuccessful.

Now, just a few weeks after announcing the program, TSA says it will be not be charging an $18 fee for the TSA Confirm.ID program, afterall.

Instead it will more than double the charge to $45, which will be good for a 10-day period.

According to a TSA statement there will be an option to pay the fee online before arriving at the airport, but the procedure for the alternative verification program may be different at each airport.

For passengers who arrive at the airport without paying the fee ahead of time, TSA says there will posted information at or near the checkpoints about how to pay the fee, but warns that however they pay, “travelers who undergo TSA Confirm.ID processing at an airport should expect delays.”

More airports add food pantries for federal employees and refuse to air DHS video

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The Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC) is joining the list of airports organizing and paying for food and supply pantries to assist federal employees who are not being paid during the federal government shutdown.

These workers include Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) workers who are considered essentional workers and are required to work without pay.

The pantry is located in the SLC Dept of Airports office and includes everything from bread and pasta to diapers and toilet paper, toothpaste and laundry detergent.

SLC airport officials say they plan to restock and keep the pantry open as long as the federal shutdown is in place.

Some of the other airports that have already put together pantries and support programs for these workers include Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL), Reno-Tahoe International Airport (RNO) and El Paso International Airport (ELP).

Several airports will be rolling out similiar programs next week.

Meanwhile, there’s a long – and growing – list of airports that are refusing to run a video at security checkpoints in which Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem blames Democrats for the continuation of the federal government shutdown.

In Detroit, the Wayne County Airport Authority has posted statements and photos explainging that it has requested that TSA stop playing the video at Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW).

“WCAA does not operate the checkpoint monitors, which are located in TSA-leased space. The TSA did not seek approval to play the message.”

The airport has placed these signs near the checkpoint entrances explaining why the videos are running.

More airports refuse to run government’s ‘blame video.’

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The list of airports that refuse to show a video featuring Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem blaming democrats for the current government shutdown keeps growing.

Yesterday, our list included Portland International Airport (PDX), Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), Spokane International Airport (GEG), Buffalo Niagara International Airport (BUF), Niagara Falls International Airport (IAG), Cleveland Hopkins International Airport (CLE) and Westchester County Airport (HPN), north of New York City, as among the airports refusing to run the video.

Today the list has expanded to include Harry Reid International Airport (LAS), Salt Lake City International Airport (SLC), Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) and, no doubt, others. We’ll add to this list as we learn of more.

“Harry Reid International Airport has declined to display a recently provided TSA video, as its content included political messaging that did not align with the neutral, informational nature of the public service announcements typically shown at the security checkpoints,” the airport said in a statement.

TSA shelves “shoes off” policy

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The Department of Homeland Security formally announced on Tuesday that all commercial airline passengers passing through Transportation Security Administration checkpoints at airports are now allowed to keep their shoes on.

TSA first instituted a “shoes off” policy in 2006, almost five years after “Shoe Bomber” Richard Reid tried to set off explosives hidden in his shoes during an American Airlines flight from Paris to Miami.

Travelers with TSA PreCheck status have been able to keep their shoes on at TSA checkpoints since 2013, courtesy of the expedited screening privileges the paid program offers.

But as of today, all passengers, including those with and those without TSA PreCheck status, may keep their shoes when going through screening at airport checkpoints.

Why the change?

DHS believes that its “cutting-edge technological advancements and multi-layered security approach” means the agency can now “implement this change while maintaining the highest security standards.”

Keep in mind, though, that the ‘shoe pass’ isn’t universal.

If you have shoes with metal in them, they’re likely to set off the alarm and you’ll be asked to take them off and send them through the X-ray machine.

If you’re selected for random extra screening (the dreaded “SSSS” on your boarding pass), you’ll also likely be asked to take your shoes off and send them through the machine.

And, as we were today, you also may be chosen at random to step aside at the checkpoint and have your shoes wiped with those little pads to check for explosives.

How many firearms did travelers bring to airport checkpoints in 2024?

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The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) released its 2024 tally for the number of firearms found at airport checkpoints.

And while this time around the number of “finds” isn’t a record breaker, it’s still quite shocking.

In 2024, (TSA) found a total of 6,678 firearms at airport security checkpoints, a slight decrease from the 6,737 firearms found in 2023.

More alarming: In 2024, approximately 94% of the firearms passengers brought to the checkpoints were loaded.

TSA screened more than 904 million passengers in 2024 and the total number of firearms found equates to 18.2 firearms found each day and 7.4 firearms per million people.

That’s a decrease from the 7.8 firearms per million people in 2023.

In 2024, firearms were discovered at 277 airports with the most firearms, 440, found at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL).

Other airports on the Top 10 list for firearm discoveries include:

Dallas Fort Worth (DFW): 390

George Bush Intercontinental (IAH): 272

Phoenix Sky Harbor (PHX): 247

Nashville (BNA): 188

Denver (DEN): 166

Orlando (MCO): 150

Dallas Love Field (DAL): 143

Tampa (TPA): 135

Austin (AUS): 126

What happens when TSA discovers a firearm at an airport checkpoint?

TSA will immediately contact local law enforcement and, depending on local laws, the person who brought the firearms to the airport will either be arrested or cited.

TSA does not confiscate firearms, but in addition to any action taken by local law enforcement, the agency has the authority to levy a maximum civil penalty of $14,950 and revoke TSA PreCheck eligibility revoked for at least five years.

Here are TSA’s Top Ten Catches from 2024

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Sharp objects, firearms, ammunition and axes are just a few of the things you can’t take on airplanes in your carry-on bags or on your person.

For a list of other items, including cattle prods, saws and dynamite, consult the Transportation Security Administration’s “What Can I Bring? list.

The list is long. But there’s a common sense reason for most of the prohibited items.

Still, not everyone has common sense. Nor is everyone honest. As we learn from TSA’s annual Top Ten list of ‘catches’ which includes pot hidden in a jar of peanut butter, firearms hidden inside inside everything from a teapot to a stroller, plus live snakes in someone’s pants.

Below the video of TSA’s Best Catches for 2024, you’ll find the list from a few previous years, including our favorites from TSA’s original social media guru, Blogger Bob Burns. We still miss him and his weekly, very scary, report of the number of firearms found at airport checkpoints.

TSA’s 6 month gun tally + Happy Birthday SEA

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The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has been screening a record number of travelers and finding lots of firearms as it does.

How many firearms?

For the first half of the year, which ended on June 30, TSA reports that it found 3,269 firearms at airport security checkpoints, an average of 19 firearms a day.

94% of all the firearms found so far were loaded.

During this period last year, TSA found about the same number of firearms: 3,251.

How’s it going now that we’re into the 2nd half of 2024?

In the first 8 days of July, TSA found an additional 166 additional firearms. So we’re off to an alarming start.

Happy 75th birthday to Seattle-Tacoma Int’l Airport

SEA easing into its 75th year

Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) celebrated a milestone birthday on Tuesday with a day of festivities in the terminal and a look back at opening day.

SEA scavenger hunt

SEA created a terminal-wide scavenger hunt in honor of its 75th birthday.

Here’s the map of where to look for the scavenger hunt items and the list of what to look for next time you’re in the SEA terminal.

Long TSA lines? Skip them with this free service

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The Memorial Day weekend means longer than usual lines at airport security checkpoints. And if you don’t have TSA PreCheck it’s a good bet you’ll find yourself standing in those very long line.

But there’s a free, ‘secret’ way to bypass those lines at more than 20 airports in North America and Europe.

For travelers without paid memberships in TSA PreCheck or CLEAR, there’s a free virtual cueing program at select airports.

Passengers can go online before they get to the airport – or when they’re at the airport – and reserve a time slot to go through a dedicated lane at the airport.

It’s like a restaurant reservation. And it lets you bypass others waiting in line.

How – and where – to get a reservation to go through airport security and skip the lines

The free airport security line reservation programs are part of Clear RESERVE, which is managed by CLEAR, the company that also runs the paid Clear Plus program that uses fingerprints or eye scans to expedite your checkpoint journey. And to make it just a bit more confusing, the Clear RESERVE program is branded differently at participating airports.

As of May 2024, free timed security checkpoint reservations are being offered at these airports in North America and Europe.

United States

  • Denver International Airport (DEN)
  • Los Angeles International Airport (LAX)
  • Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP)
  • New York John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK)
  • Newark Liberty International Airport (EWR)
  • Orlando International Airport (MCO
  • Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX)
  • Seattle Tacoma International Airport (SEA)

Canada

  • Calgary International Airport (YYC)
  • Edmonton International Airport (YEG)
  • Halifax International Airport (YHZ)
  • Montreal-Trudeau International Airport (YUL)
  • Toronto International Airport (YYZ)
  • Vancouver International Airport (YVR)

Europe

  • Amsterdam Airport Schiphol (AMS)
  • Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER)
  • Frankfurt Airport (FRA)
  • Hanover Airport (HAJ)
  • London Heathrow Airport (LHR)
  • Rome Fiumicino Leonardo da Vinci Airport (FCO

How to book your free security checkpoint reservation

If the security checkpoint reservation is offered at your departure airport, use the airport or Clear Reserve website to book your time.

Enter your flight and contact information, and if a reservation slot is available, you will receive a confirmation email with a QR code.

When you arrive at the airport, show your QR code at the designated TSA checkpoint lane.

Your reservation will have a 20-minute grace period. But if you have made a group reservation, everyone on the reservation must be there at the appointment time.

Self-service security screening? It’s being tested

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Self-service checkout works at the grocery store.

So why not self-service screening at the airport?

That’s what the Transportation Security Administration has in mind.

For the next six months, TSA and the Department of Homeland Security will be testing a self-service checkpoint at Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) in Las Vegas.

Starting in mid-March, travelers enrolled in TSA PreCheck will have the option to use TSA’s Innovation Checkpoint at LAS and test out a prototype technology that includes new body scanning technology that lets passengers complete the screening process on their own.

As they do now, travelers will empty their pockets and put all carry-on items into bins that go through the X-ray machines. Then each passenger steps into an enclosed scanning booth.

If, for example, the passenger has left a cell phone in their pocket, the booth directs them to step out, empty their pockets and try again.

The goal, TSA says, is to use this technology to cut down on instances where a TSA agent is required to conduct a pat-down or secondary screening.

Curious about how it works and ready – or not – to give it a try?

Here’s a TV clip from TODAY.

It’s here! TSA’s Top 10 Best Catches of 2023

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Throwing knives, replica rockets, a knife hidden in a loaf of bread, meth tucked inside a jar of crab boil spices, and a 35mm projectile.

These are just some of the weird and prohibited items found by the TSA in travelers’ carry-on bags last year.

But wait, there’s more.

A knife hidden in the shoe of a prosthetic, a fully loaded firearm with 166 bullets, an explosive cartridge, hash inside a diaper (!), and an inert explosive device inside of a soda can.

Each year TSA gathers up some of the more bizarre items the agency’s officers encounter at the checkpoints and puts them together in a Top 10 reel.

Take a look. Below the 2023 reel, we’ve added some highlight reels of TSA’s Top Ten Best TSA Catches from past years.

Here’s the TSA Top Catches video that started it all back in 2016. When the charming and goofy Blogger Bob was on duty.

Blogger Bob was back with a great reel of finds in 2017.

Here’s the 2019 edition of the TSA’s Top 10 Finds.

And here’s the reel of TSA’s Top Ten Catches from 2022.