Every holiday season there seems to be a little frustration for those who travel by plane. I’m always getting asked how I deal with getting through security since I travel so much. So…

Here are 7 steps to get you through airport security in a quick and easy fashion.

1. Show up early. If you are checking a bag, make sure you know the baggage acceptance cutoff time the airline allows in order for you to get your checked bag on the flight. Some cities are 30 minutes, some are 40 minutes, some are 45 minutes and some are 60 minutes before the flights departure time. If you don’t make the cutoff then you don’t get to check your bag then you are left with a decision as to what to do with your bag or try to get on a later flight. Check your airlines website for this information. Also, security delays vary by concourse and terminal. Go to tsa.gov to find average wait times. If you’re not checking bags, print your boarding pass at home and head to the fastest line.

2. Go to the shortest line. After you pass ID screening, quickly go to the shortest line. Don’t hesitate to bypass those with a look of confusion on their face. Not only will you get there faster, you’ll keep the whole line moving. If you are in a premium line set up by the airlines or the expert traveler line, it is assumed that you know how to get through security quickly with the next four steps. As is the case in Nashville, most inexperienced travelers think the Expert Traveler line is the short line. The Expert Traveler Line is not the short line, it is for those who know how to get through security with little to no effort. Which most times makes it a quicker line… not to be confused with a shorter line. Those who don’t travel often usually make the Expert Line slower because they don’t travel enough to know how to get through security quickly.

Here is a helpful link to determine which kind of traveler you are as you go through security. What Kind of Traveler Are You?

3. Carry a messenger bag. The top flap gives easy access to your laptop and Ziploc of liquids and gels while the pockets provide plenty of storage for alarm-trippers such as your belt, wallet, keys, watch, and phone. Don’t worry about pulling your iPad out. TSA just wants your laptop.

4. Dress strategically. If you don’t have to wear a belt, then don’t. Try to wear as little jewelry as possible or at least put it in your messenger bag or purse until you get through security and never carry coins in your pants pocket while flying. You will just have to empty the coins out and nothing slows a line down faster than someone who has to take off every piece of jewelry and empty every coin from their pockets. If you see a pocket protector full of stuff on the guy in front of you, be prepared to wait. That guy’s a rookie.

5. Wear laceless shoes. I always wear boots, running shoes with lace locks, or flip flops in the summer so I can slip into them quickly and easily once they have come through the scanner.

6. Use only two bins. Place shoes, coat, and Ziploc of liquids and gels in the first bin; laptop in the second; Send the messenger bag through first followed by the laptop, then your second bin (shoes, coat, and Ziploc of liquids and gels) followed by your roller bag. If you have a roller bag, keep the roller on the floor, where it’s easy to manage until the last minute before you place it on the belt.

7. Don’t complain. There are probably several reasons for us to complain about why people get pulled aside for the ‘full body’ scan and search. Especially, if those people are elderly. No matter, it’s the TSA’s job to follow through certain procedures regardless of age or race. I know, it’s frustrating sometimes and I have seen my share of frustrated people going through security. If for some reason you do see the TSA do something that is completely out of line, then report it online. The TSA blog is a great place to file a complaint, as they are very quick to look into the situation and fix it if the complaint is valid. Those that complain in the security line slow down the line for everyone else, including themselves.

With all the attention and controversy around the new body scanners (Advanced Image Technology), you do have the option to opt out of the scanner screening in exchange of a “pat down”. Click HERE to read about opting out of the Advanced Image Technology Screening.

One thing to know if you don’t travel often – The full body scanners aren’t being used 100% of the time. Just during certain parts of the day.

Also, here is a little blurb about traveling with liquids in your carry on bag. This is from the TSA as well.

The 3-1-1 rules for liquids, gels and aerosols remain in effect. All liquids, except those that are medically exempted must be in 3oz or less containers, in a one quart zip-top bag, one bag per traveler. Speaking of medically exempt liquids and technology, we’re currently using Bottled Liquids Scanners (BLS) to screen sealed containers for a wide range of explosive liquids. The technology is used primarily to test medically exempt liquids brought through checkpoints in quantities larger than three ounces.

SO… if you are flying over the holidays this season…Show up prepared. More times than not, the problems that occur in the security line are because of the passenger, not the TSA. The short time it takes to get through security doesn’t have to ruin your whole day if YOU are the one with your stuff together.

As George Clooney says in the movie Up In The Air “To know me is to fly with me.”

Happy traveling!

P.S. Thanks @AmericanAir for making my travel life easy and to Marlyn Bullock for booking all of my travel. You always get it right… every time.

Even though I didn’t fly at all this past week, I still am a valued customer with American Airlines even when I wasn’t caught in all the craziness of canceled flights. Here’s the email I got below…

And just in case you were wondering and had questions. Click HERE for to read more about American Airlines MD-80 Fleet Inspections.

I’ve flown on private jets over the years and it’s a pretty awesome way to go. Of course, I was always a guest of the person who owned the jet or the my band at the time would lease them from time to time. No matter what…it’s a great way to travel. So here’s an interesting article from the good folks at msnbc.com and forbes.com written by Rebecca Ruiz.

Eight reasons you need to fly private

For
those who fly privately, price is often no object. Take, for example, a
hedge fund manager who recently hired the Long Island, N.Y.-based Talon
Air to fly him and five guests to Las Vegas on a Gulfstream IV.

The
party began their four-day trip with a catered meal from the exclusive
Japanese restaurant Nobu. They relaxed in reclining leather seats and
sped toward Sin City at 570 miles per hour. On the return flight, they
again enjoyed a Nobu meal, this one prepared at the Las Vegas
restaurant.

The total cost? $86,000, which included a $5,000 bill for catering.

Not
all passengers on private planes spend so extravagantly, but the
industry is a lucrative one. There are 166 million people who use
general aviation annually, which includes private or corporate jets,
according to the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA).
Two-thirds of total general aviation flight time is used for business
purposes. The business-jet market has also been steadily growing since
the mid-90s, when the North American fleet of jets topped 6,000. There
are now more than 10,000 business jets in North America and over 14,000
worldwide, according to Honeywell Aerospace.

Growing
demand is due partly to an increasingly globalized world in which sales
teams from New York meet clients in India or Russia regularly. The
interest in private travel has also correlated with the dismal
performances of domestic commercial airlines. Only 80% of flights were
on time in November 2007, according to the U.S. Department of
Transportation, a discouraging statistic for business travelers who
need reliable transportation.

Increased
market competitiveness has yielded a dizzying array of choices for both
luxury and business clients when it comes to flying solo. Pete Bunce,
CEO and president of GAMA, says that the spectrum of choices is
impressive.

“If you’ve got business in
Japan, you’ll want a [plane] with tremendous long capability,” Bunce
says. “If you’re a big person, like a football player, you’ll want
something that will fit your size. The choices allow virtually anyone
to tailor how they want to fly.”

HT:MSNBC.COM

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Oh…this is a helpful site! Good seats, bad seats…power ports and more…it’s a lovely site for the perfect info to make your next flight just right.

The ultimate source for airplane seating, in-flight amenities and airline information! Rock on…

seatguru.com click HERE and enjoy.

I’m not really sure how I found this blog, but I did. It’s pretty informative and answers a lot of questions you might have on the process of getting through airport security. I’m pretty impressed that they would start a blog, because as most of us bloggers know, there’s no better way to get the right information out there, than to be able to say it yourself. The blog is called Evolution of Security and you can click here to view it.

For all you travelers out there, I would recommend giving this one a look. Add a few comments…ask a few questions…

My older brother forwarded me this article this morning and I thought it was well worth the post. Check it out below. It’s by Peter Greenberg for TODAY.

Flight delayed or canceled? Peter Greenberg on how to get what you want

Peter Greenberg TODAY Travel Editor • Profile • E-mail‘);

A
few years ago, at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport, I noticed something strange
on the departure boards. American Airlines had three flights scheduled
that afternoon from ORD to Boston, and all were apparently operating on
time. United, on the other hand, had three flights scheduled from ORD
to Boston, but none were operating on time. In fact, all three United
flights showed "canceled."

I smelled a rat. I went to the United counter and asked the reason for the cancellations. "Weather."

Weather?
The airlines couldn’t have it both ways. Either American Airlines
pilots were irresponsible, crazy air jockeys who were going to tease
the gods and fly into the face of serious storms, or United’s official
cancellation reason was a convenient untruth.

I checked the weather in both Chicago and Boston: totally clear.

I
went back out to the United gates and informed the counter agents that
I knew the weather was fine and also explained that all the American
flights were operating without problem. And then I invoked Rule 240 —
which states that in the event of any flight delay or cancellation
caused by anything other than weather, the airline would fly
me on the next available flight — not their next available flight,
which might not leave for another 24 hours.

And guess what happened? A lot of United passengers made it to Boston that day — on American.

Click here to go to the MSNBC TODAY website and read the full article.

Ahhh…I love this article sent to me from my friend Stephanie. Here’s the beginning of this article below. Just click on the link here or below to read the full post. It’s eye opening!!!

Confessions of an Airline Ticket Agent

Air travel these days can be as chaotic and draining as a four year
old’s birthday party — without the goody bags, er, in-flight meals, no
less.

But before you lose your cool with a ticket agent in the heat of a cancelled connection moment, think twice.

Those
arrangers of seating assignments and labelers of luggage hold more than
just your boarding pass in the palms of their quickly typing hands.
Depending on your attitude, a ticket agent can turn out to be your best
friend.

Or your worst travel nightmare.

We recently
dished with a ticket agent with nearly two decades of experience
working for a major U.S. airline. In between putting out customer
service fires at a Midwestern hub, here’s what he had to say:

Payback For Rude Passengers

Click here to read more.

Here’s a great article from cnn.com you can read the full article here. I’m posting part of the article below. It’s a good read with GREAT advice!!!

Avoiding delays

At a time when so many travelers feel
helpless, frequent fliers stress the need to be proactive. "If you’re
on offensive footing, as opposed to defensive, all of life goes better,
including flying," says Troy Williams, an Internet entrepreneur from
Houston, Texas, who has logged as many as 150,000 air miles in a year.

Here are some techniques Williams and other savvy travelers like him employ to avoid delays:

Fly as early as possible to avoid the ripple effect of compounding delays throughout the day.

A friend of mine told me that there are 65,000 in the air on a flight at any one time. So I’m trying to google  this and have found a couple of more places where people have said this. Is it true? Do you think so? As much as I travel, I think this could very well be true. It’s an impressive number. What do you think?

OK…so the streets are packed with cars! People are getting their last minute shopping done or in my case, just starting. There’s just a lot of traffic! That means there is going to be a lot of crazy people on the roads. So make sure you do a couple of things.

1. Be aware of who is around you so that you can be on your guard for a crazy driver.

2. Give yourself enough time to get to where you need to go. It’s just a fact. There’s going to be lots of traffic!!!

As for you folks who are flying over the next few days. Be early to the airport. It never hurts to be early. So you might have to sit in an uncomfortable chair for a hour or so. Big deal. At least you are there in time for your plane and you made it through security with out it being stressful.

Also, if you are an experienced flyer and you see someone that is having a bit of trouble, maybe because they don’t seem to fly as much as you, then please take time to help them out.

It’s Christmas time…be of good cheer and help a neighbor out.

Merry Christmas!

Here’s a great post from Upgrade Travel Better. I do all of this below and then some, but this is a great start. I will add that if you have a membership to an Airline’s Club or Lounge like The Admiral’s Club, you can get some great help when you have a problem with your flights if you go into the club and let the people at the desk help you. They rock.

Click Here to read more.

HT: Upgrade: Better Travel

I’m headed to Colorado Springs today. I got up at the crack of dawn. Actually it was before the crack happened cause it was dark outside. Anyways…I was going through airport security and every time I watch these men and women that are supposed to be highly trained security folks to be our first line of defense in case some thing where to happen again like 911, I get a little frustrated and bewilder at their logic and lack of understand for people that don’t travel. Don’t get me wrong. I think they are needed. But could we hire a few more smart ones? It one of those things where I go… "ah, my tax dollars are really kickin’ in here." I saw this elderly lady get told she couldn’t take a few items and that she either need to throw them away or check them at the ticket counter. It was some lotion and shaving cream. I really think she was thinking that the guy meant she couldn’t take the bag they were in and that she needed to check it. This dear old lady and her husband had to turn around and go back…I wish our TSA guys and gals explained things a little better. They deal with people everyday. They could stand to be a little more perceptive sometimes…all the guy had to do was say "ma’am…it’s just these two items. I need to give you the option to go to the ticket counter but you might miss your flight and have to go all the way back through this long security line. These two items are simple to get once you get to your destination. let me just take them and you go to your flight."

So the other thing that bugs me…and sorry for the ranting by the way…i just feel a little irritable today…the other thing that bugs me is people that where blue tooth headsets and talk way to loud in public places. THEN!!!! You see this guy sitting with his wife and he has got this star trek looking device in his ear. I wonder if the wife looks at him and thinks… "you know i’m really important to my husband, until he gets a call…then he’s really ready to whip into business action and not miss a beat." I wear a headset when i drive or i’m in my office or at home, but not in public. It’s obnoxious. Please guys…if you are out to dinner or trying to have a conversation with the one you love…take that stupid thing out of your ear and show them they are important. It’s the little things…