If you’re old enough to remember it, you know that 9/11 changed everything about the way we fly.
Security was there, but it was pretty lax. Airports frequently outsourced the job to private security companies, usually those who had been the lowest bidder. And there were no federal guidelines for airport security at the time. So you could walk up to the gate at the very last minute; you didn’t even have to have a boarding pass. No questions asked, no ID needed.
After 9/11, everything changed, and over the years, security morphed into the system we have now, complete with scanners to check everything before we’re allowed to continue on to the “secure” side of the airport.
Although it’s quite the rigmarole, especially for those who don’t fly very often, most people don’t mind the process of everything having to go through the scanners. But there are some who would just as soon not.
But is refusal even an option?
A few types of screenings go on: one for our checked bags, one for our person/body, and one for our carry-on/personal bags.
Can you refuse a screening of your checked luggage?
Officially, no. If your bag is going to go into the belly of the plane, you can be 100% sure that TSA will scan it and potentially go through it by hand, if they deem it necessary.
The only way you can not have checked luggage scanned is to not bring checked luggage with you.
Can you refuse to go through the scanner?
People who have TSA PreCheck are generally required to go through a walk-through metal detector (WTMD), while those who don’t usually need to go through Advanced Imaging Technology (AIT) (that’s the one where you have to spread your feet and raise your arms over your head).
However, there are some people with certain medical conditions who are unable to go through these two types of scanners. Others may simply not want to go through them for fear of scans, radiation, etc. The CDC says the following about exposure:
The United States uses millimeter-wave technology in airport security scans. This form of technology uses low-energy non-ionizing radiation that releases thousands of times less energy than a cell phone.
Millimeter-wave technology does not use x-rays and does not add to a person’s ionizing radiation dose.
But some people are still concerned. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Anyway, if someone is unable or unwilling to go through the scanners, they are welcome to be patted down instead.
Can you refuse a pat down?
No. Here’s why, and what would happen if you did.
Can you refuse to have your carry-on/personal bag go through the scanner?
Yes, to an extent.
Some people don’t want their medications to go through the scanners. According to the FDA’s Center for Biologics, any harmful effects from airport scanners on medications would occur only at doses that are “orders of magnitude higher” than the radiation received from WTMD or AIT screening devices. But some people are still concerned, and it’s not an outlandish request. The same goes for film, certain types of electronics, machinery, etc.
But if that’s the case, be aware that you must have “whatever it is” hand-screened – just like a pat down, there’s no way to get out of it. And that could take quite some time. Like, “An hour or more” to go through all your stuff, piece by piece. So give yourself plenty of time; the TSA officers aren’t going to not do their due diligence just because your plane leaves in half an hour.
That said, the TSA has the right to deny hand screening if the supervisor on shift says so.
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