Airport security measures introduced after the September 11 attacks are beginning to loosen, with some travellers once again allowed to pass through security to meet friends and relatives at the gate.
The changes, announced as the United States marks the 25th anniversary of the attacks, include a new Transportation Security Administration (TSA) scheme allowing approved members of trusted-traveller programmes to enter secure airport areas without holding a boarding pass.
Known as Gateside by TSA PreCheck, the free service has been introduced at 13 airports, including Los Angeles International, Dallas-Fort Worth, Detroit Metropolitan, Salt Lake City and Harry Reid International in Las Vegas.
Applicants must apply online between one and three days before their visit and receive approval in advance. The Associated Press reported that an approved pass is valid for one calendar day, with visitors able to re-enter during that period.
The scheme restores a form of airport access that was largely abandoned after the 11 September 2001 attacks. The TSA said it would allow eligible visitors to welcome arriving passengers, accompany relatives to their gate, meet friends during a long layover and use shops and restaurants beyond the security checkpoint.
Post-9/11 airport security measures begin to change
The most visible shift at checkpoints came on 8 July 2025, when Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced that passengers travelling through domestic US airports would no longer routinely have to remove their shoes.
The policy had been introduced after Richard Reid, later dubbed the “shoe bomber”, attempted to detonate explosives concealed in his footwear during a Paris-to-Miami flight in December 2001.
Liquid restrictions remain in place. They followed the discovery of a plot in 2006 involving liquid explosives, and passengers are still generally limited to containers of no more than 3.4 ounces, or 100 millilitres, in their hand luggage.
Some airports have installed scanners that can examine bags without passengers removing liquids, although the equipment is not available at every checkpoint. The container-size limit continues to apply.
Improved screening technology has helped make some of the changes possible, according to Jeff Price, a professor of aviation and aerospace science at Metropolitan State University of Denver and an airport management consultant.
“The technologies today are better than they were a long time ago and some of the technology that’s been deployed is better than it was five years ago,” he said.
Travellers can also pay for faster processing through TSA PreCheck, which costs $76.75 for five years. Members undergo background checks and use dedicated lanes with fewer screening requirements.
Private operator Clear offers another route through identity checks using pre-screened biometric data, although the expansion of expedited screening has raised questions about how much personal information travellers are willing to provide to the government or private companies.
Private screening plan abandoned
Not every attempt to modernise airport security has gone smoothly. The TSA abandoned its TSA Gold+ initiative in August, after proposing a larger role for private contractors at selected airports.
Tampa International Airport had spent several months assessing the plan, which was intended partly to reduce the disruption caused by government shutdowns and to provide access to newer screening technology.
The airport ultimately decided to retain federal TSA officers. John Tiliacos, Tampa’s chief operating officer, said officials had not been satisfied that they had received answers to all their questions about the technology.
The TSA’s new administrator, David Cummins, said the agency would replace Gold+ with a revised screening partnership programme intended to make greater use of the private sector while maintaining responsibility for aviation security.
New threats for aviation security
The easing of some long-standing rules does not mean the security challenge has diminished. Officials say the threats facing airports are becoming more varied, including cyber attacks, drones and the use of artificial intelligence.
Keith Jeffries, a former TSA security director at Los Angeles International Airport and vice-president of K2 Security Screening Group, said the remit of aviation security was expanding as new technologies developed.
“You have AI. You’ve got cybersecurity issues that continue to pop up. Drones are a major issue,” he said.
Security measures may become less intrusive for some passengers, but Jeffries warned that no system could eliminate every risk. “There is no such thing as the perfect security mousetrap. It doesn’t exist,” he said.
