TSA Pre Check passenger (me)
Luggage: One checked bag, one carry on and one small (12 X 10 X 8”) camera bag with one Canon 5DIV body with 2 Batteries. One Canon 24 to 70 f:2.8, one Canon 600EX-RT flash (8 rechargeable batteries, chargers), two filters, lens wipes, and micro-fiber cloths.
Dates of travel: Oct 2017 – Early November 2017
Places traveled: Va to LA, LA to Australia, New Zealand to LA, and LA to Va.
My observations: The TSA lines moved fast, and there was not a lot of standing around like my travel last year. The inspection process was very thorough. Everything associated with the inspection process seemed well thought out.
Yes, some folks were detained for a more thorough search, but I suspect that they were the ones that did not follow the TSA instructions. Some could have been randomly selected too.
My brief tips: Go to the TSA website
https://www.tsa.gov/ and read it thoroughly, and comply with all of the instructions.
Segregate anything that could possibly be suspect to the scanner, or TSA agents into groups (batteries, chargers, any connecting wires, etc., and place these items into separate zip-loc bags. Now, place these items on the top inside of your bag all set for quick removal. Keep a one (gallon) zip-loc bag for the contents of your pockets. Empty all of your pockets into the zip-loc bag as you are walking towards the actual inspection site. Once you have your plastic bin in hand remove all of the plastic zip-loc bags and place them in the bin, then load your camera bag on its side in the bin so that it is as “short” as possible. Now arrange everything in the zip-loc bags in the plastic bin so that they may be easily seen, and place the bin on the conveyor. The tip on using zip-loc bags on the TSA website has served me well.
I wish all of my UHH friends all safe travels. My hat is off to the TSA agents doing a hard job, keeping us hungry, tired, and cranky travelers safe. Please feel free to add your airline carry on travel tips to this post.