Wednesday, May 7th, 2008

What a nuisance! (TSA)

Ever since the outbreak of 9-11, USA has been implementing stringent procedures to protect its citizens of America. If you had a chance to fly out of your local airport lately, you probably noticed that it is no longer a convenient means of transportation.

First things first, airlines have recently started a new policy where passengers are only allowed ONE extra baggage to be checked in under the plane. Any extra baggage would be subject to a hefty fee. And that isn’t the worst of the matter; the bag must not exceed 50 pounds in weight unless you are willing to pay $25.00 USD for every overage pound. If your bag is considered over-sized then you will need to take them to a special x-ray machine for examination upon completion of checking in to your flight. Upon completion of checking in to your flight, there are several more nuisances that follow.

After you receive your boarding pass, you are allowed to head towards the security checkpoint (where at times it can be a bit frustrating). Before you can load your belongings (each passenger is only allowed to carry on with them one luggage and one bag) onto the x-ray machines, you must pass the security checkpoint stand. This checkpoint requires a TSA security officer to examine your ID or passport and boarding pass before proceeding to the x-ray machines. If everything looks okay, the guard will stamp your boarding pass and you may continue to proceed to the x-ray machines.

When you reach the x-ray machines, you must make sure that you remove your shoes, coats or sweaters, and laptop computers. Laptop computers must be separated and put into a tray by itself. After you have loaded all your belongings into the machine, you have to go through a metal detector with your boarding pass in hand, for there is another guard waiting to check your boarding pass again as soon as you pass through the metal detector. And if all goes well, you can gather your belongings, put on your shoes and finally head towards your gate for departure (that is only if by this time you haven’t already missed your flight).

Next week, I will be talking about the cute TSA puppies that seek out bomb threats.