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Some
airlines, because of the September 11, 2001 catastrophe, request
that you arrive at the airport two hours before your flight.
Check with your airline since this might not stay this way as security
changes and gets more efficient.
Security is the area where passengers and
carry on luggage are checked before going into the plane. |
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There are two parts. You put everything in your pockets and anything
you are carrying on a conveyor belt. You might give your teddy bear
a ride, too! The x-ray machine flashes a picture of the insides of the stuff you
are taking on the plane. Security people might open your carry on to check
things that simply 'look funny' as it passes through this machine. Security people might also ask if you have had your
carry on
'under your control' at all times when you were in the airport. They
ask this to see if there is a chance that someone might have put something
illegal in your bag when you left it alone to go somewhere. [By the
way, this is a good time to say: Don't do this! If airport
people see carry ons, backpacks, or luggage left alone, they figure it
might be a bomb or something and they deal with it like it is. The
SWAT team will show up for your bag with pjs in it but, worse than that,
they might keep your bag or make you miss your plane. So, keep that
bag with you always!]
So, you can see that this is the sort of thing
that takes extra time. You need to remember that these people are
trying to make flying as safe as it can be.
Passengers go through the metal detector.
This is where people make it ring when they have keys in their
pockets. Sometimes passengers are asked to go in and out of the
metal detector a couple of times.
Some larger airports have cone-like scanners that
the security people use to find weapons and chemicals.
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Since September 11, 2001, the United States has been adding more
security to its airports. Because of this, you will probably
see armed National Guards men and women who are at the Security
areas and walking around the airport. They will be carrying
guns and rifles because they need these things to better protect passengers and planes. They are really nice
people and there to protect you--like policemen at home. |
There are lots of cameras everywhere in airports. This is also
part of the security system. The U.S. is now locking cockpits and
giving more self-defense training to flight attendants. There
will probably be lots of changes in Security as new tools and better ideas
come along. So--when the lines get long and it takes awhile,
remember that Security is part of the safety system and necessary so that
your trip is a comfortable and protected one.
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