Many of the people my age do not remember where they were on September 11th, 2001. I do remember though, I was in second grade. I was in Ms. Allen's classroom for some reason, even though she was a 3rd grade teacher. During lunch they brought in a special edition of the Topeka Capital Journal. The picture on the front page was the twin towers in smoke. I went home and my mom was upset and slightly frantic. That was day the day national security changed for flying.
One of the main changes was the liquids for carry-on bags. We use to be able to carry on full size shampoo and conditioner. We could also take water, formula or breast milk through without issue. Now liquids (excluding breast milk, formula and water for breastfeeding moms and formula) is limited to 3 oz each. All of those must fit into one quart size Ziploc bag. You must remove it going through security and put it in a tote. If you have the breast milk or formula, they will want to sniff it and may want to take a sample of it to test. Luckily you can take hotel shampoo and such to use, but if its a long trip and you want to take just a carry on, you might want to reconsider.
Another change was the metal detector/screening process. We use to be able to walk through security with jackets and shoes on. We use to be able to walk through holding our infants without having to additionally screened. Now we must remove shoes and jackets if we are not within a certain age group, no matter how cold the airport is. And if you carry you infant through security they need to test your hands. I had the pleasure of having my hands tested. It is an easy process unless they have to wait for someone to screen you, or if no one is listening to the agents asking for the screening.
These changes have affected the time it take to get through security. Many times they recommend arriving to the airport a couple hours before your flight takes off, even if you print off your own tickets at home. Some airports, like Kansas City International, have multiple security checkpoints per terminal. That means you have to find the one to go through, but they usually only have a few agents in total working, making the line take forever even with only 20-30 people in it. Most airports have one big checkpoint for each terminal or for all. It might seem like it takes forever but they screen more people and I feel like they take the same amount of time.
The fear that was established on that day has forever changed our security. My hair was once patted and searched because it was big and frizzy. I wore a hoodie and was searched too. Our security will continue to change with each new threat, but that was the day that started it all.
