Pre-9/11 gate-side tradition returns at some U.S. airports
The Transportation Security Administration has launched a new program allowing eligible TSA PreCheck members without plane tickets to pass through airport security and reach the gates at some U.S. airports, reviving a tradition that largely disappeared after the September 11, 2001 attacks.
For decades, the airport security checkpoint has marked the end of the road for friends and relatives seeing off a traveler. The new program changes that for eligible PreCheck members at participating airports, allowing them to enter the secure area of the terminal without a boarding pass.
“As an exclusive benefit for our most trusted travelers, this new program makes it easier to return to the gate for welcomes and send-offs, meet friends during a layover, and enjoy dining and shopping along the way, bringing back the moments that once defined air travel,” TSA said on its website.
Before the September 11 attacks, people without tickets generally could accompany travelers to the gate. The attacks prompted sweeping changes to airport security, including restrictions on access to secure areas of airports that ended the practice for most travelers.
Rio Yamat reported from Las Vegas.