Before September 11, 2001, going to the airport was much easier. You could:
- Walk right up to the gate without a ticket
- Bring drinks and big bottles of shampoo
- Keep your shoes on
- Get through security in just a few minutes
- Say goodbye to family at the gate
People didn't worry much about safety. The rules were not very strict.
On September 11, 2001, something very bad happened:
- Bad people took control of four airplanes
- They crashed two planes into the World Trade Center in New York City
- They crashed one plane into the Pentagon in Washington, D.C.
- One plane crashed in a field in Pennsylvania
- Almost 3,000 people died that day
This made everyone very scared and sad. It also made people realize that airport security needed to change.
After 9/11, going to the airport became very different:
- You have to wait in long security lines
- You must take off your shoes and belt
- You have to empty your pockets
- Your bags go through big X-ray machines
- You can only bring small amounts of liquids
- Only people with tickets can go to the gates
- There are more guards and police dogs
These new rules help keep everyone safe, but they also make traveling slower and more difficult.
Here are some of the big changes that happened after 9/11:
- 2001: The government made new rules right away. No sharp objects allowed on planes.
- 2001: The TSA (Transportation Security Administration) was created to keep airports safe.
- 2002: All bags had to be checked for bombs.
- 2003: Some pilots were allowed to carry guns to protect the plane.
- 2006: New rules said you can only bring small amounts of liquids on planes.
- 2008: Dogs that can smell bombs started working at airports.
- 2009: Some airports got machines that can see through your clothes to check for weapons.
- 2011: The TSA PreCheck program started. It lets some people go through security faster.
- 2015: The TSA gave workers more training to do a better job.
- 2016: People started worrying about safety in areas before the security checkpoints.
- 2017: Some airports started using computers to scan people's faces.
Today, airport security is still very important:
- The TSA is always trying to find new ways to keep people safe
- There have been no successful attacks on planes in the U.S. since 9/11
- But going to the airport takes longer and can be frustrating
- Some people think the rules are too strict, while others think they keep us safe
The goal is to find a balance between safety and making travel easy for people.
Schaper, David. “It Was Shoes on, No Boarding Pass or ID. but Airport Security Forever Changed on 9/11.” NPR, NPR, 10 Sept. 2021, www.npr.org/2021/09/10/1035131619/911-travel-timeline-tsa.
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Las Escuelas Públicas de Omaha no discriminan basados en la raza, color, origen nacional, religión, sexo, estado civil, orientación sexual, discapacidad , edad, información genética, estado de ciudadanía, o estado económico, en sus programas, actividades y empleo, y provee acceso equitativo a los “Boy Scouts” y a otros grupos juveniles designados. La siguiente persona ha sido designada para atender estas inquietudes referentes a las pólizas de no discriminación: El Superintendente de las Escuelas, 3215 Cuming Street, Omaha, NE 68131 (531-299-9822).