OAG Travel News

It's not surprising that Tim Burke is taking an airplane flight Monday, but it is unusual that he's looking forward to it.

The reason: Starting on Saturday, some of the nation's airline passengers will not have to remove their laptops at airport checkpoints.

"I'm going to feel a sense of freedom," said Burke, CEO of Garven gift-packaging company, who makes weekly flights between his home in Denver and the company's headquarters in Minneapolis.

Passengers who have what the Transportation Security Administration calls "checkpoint-friendly" laptop cases  so-called because X-ray machines can easily see through them  will be free to go through security without opening the case. The policy change by the TSA could speed up security lines for the 2 million people who take U.S. flights each day and reduce incidents in which laptops are damaged, lost or forgotten in airports.

"Not having to deal with a computer is a big thing," said Burke, who bought a $25 laptop sleeve he thinks he can put through checkpoint X-ray machines with his MacBook inside.

The new policy also could create confusion at the nation's 450 commercial airports.

The TSA is not certifying or approving laptop cases, brands or styles. Instead, the agency has published guidelines for the checkpoint-friendly cases, essentially requiring that they provide a clear and uncluttered view of the laptop through an X-ray machine.

If a TSA screener can't get a clear X-ray view of a laptop to verify that it's not concealing explosives, the screener can order it to be checked.

"There's going to be an education issue with consumers. Some people won't understand what checkpoint-friendly is," said Jim Lahren, vice president for marketing at Briggs & Riley Travelware. The company, like many others, tested its laptop cases in June at Washington Dulles International Airport with a TSA screener giving feedback.

Lahren said the company is adding embroidered "checkpoint-friendly" labels to cases, which will be in stores in two weeks.

He worries that other companies will add similar labels even if their cases don't follow TSA standards.

The TSA is posting signs at checkpoints explaining the guidelines to passengers.

Source: By Thomas Frank, USA TODAY