The Airport as Obstacle Course

April 5, 2005 — -- The great American institution known as the Obstacle Course used to be a thing military recruits experienced in basic training: scaling impossibly high wooden walls, crawling through a maze under barbed wire and maneuvering through a host of people trying to block the way. The American airport was never supposed to be like that, yet today it is, especially if you don't "know the ropes."

So how do you minimize the stress and the aggravation of the airport obstacle course? First, break the experience into the following phases and make some personal decisions about how to deal with each one: getting to the airport, dealing with baggage, dealing with your ticket and reservation on check-in, and getting through security.

Phase 1: Getting to the airport. This is a huge barrier, especially in major American cities. The cost of parking can be $20 to $30 per day and the hassle of using off-site parking is measured in lost time. Sometimes you can't find a parking place rapidly at any price.

The best method? Get to the airport without driving your car. If you live in a city that has rail service into the airport, consider using it, or one of the new door-to-door shuttle services, or just a car service, taxi or friend. The point: Decide on a method that causes the least stress and distraction.

By the way, do you have to get to the airport two hours ahead of departure all the time? No, but it's the least stressful rule of thumb, because sudden backups in security screening alone can block you from a flight, and no one at the airport will be sympathetic if you skid in the door at the last minute.

Phase 2: Baggage. Forget the bag locks (unless they're TSA-approved). Do NOT pack expensive possessions (theft from bags still occurs). And if you tend to pack a lot of stuff, use a bathroom scale to weigh your bag before heading for the airport because virtually all airlines now gleefully charge you cash on domestic flights for bags over 50 pounds.

Also, go to the Transportation Security Administration's Web site (the address is http://www.tsa.gov/public/) to find out exactly what is and isn't OK to put in your bags. And don't be shy about calling the airline for information. Basic point: Do NOT assume anything about what you can carry in either checked or carry-on baggage in the post-9/11 world. Make sure you know. Then, use curbside check-in (for domestic flights only) when you can and tip those folks nicely. They make things easier.

Phase 3: Checking in. All airlines are stressed financially and trying to automate everything possible. Give up trying to fight it because that trend is not going to change. Your best, lowest-stress method of dealing with what used to be a rather mundane, go-to-the-counter check-in procedure featuring real humans is to use the various airline Internet sites where you can check in and even print your own boarding pass before leaving for the airport. This is a very good idea!

If you don't have that capability, at least get familiar with the increasing number of automated check-in machines standing at or in front of most ticket counters. The key to using them? Have your so-called Confirmation Code (or Record Locator Code/Number) with you and instantly available, as well as a credit card in your name if possible. (Make sure, if you use Expedia or Travelocity, that you have the airline's code, not theirs), and NEVER head for the airport without some current, government-issued, photo ID. (If you have a passport, carry it, even domestically). Don't forget we're at war and special measures are necessary.

So what about checking bags with Internet check-in or machine kiosk check-in?

Follow your airline's signs for Internet or E-ticket bag check or use curbside check-in. If you use Internet check-in and have no bags to check, you're the happiest of campers because you can go straight to security and on to the gate.

Phase 4: Passenger screening. Things are 1,000 percent better than the pre-Transportation Security Administration days when a cats-and-dogs collection of private "security" companies pretended to provide passenger screening. TSA may not be perfect, but it struggles hard to train courteous, consistent and vigilant agents, and they deserve our support.

Our job? Take some time to consider how to make your passage through security faster. For instance, wear shoes you can quickly take off and put in the tray. Minimize jewelry or other metallic items that might be hard or time-consuming to take off and put back on. Make absolutely sure you have no prohibited items (penknives, lighters of any sort, objects with points or even corkscrews, etc.) in your carry-on luggage, because you will either lose them or have to leave security and find a place to put them before going through the line again.

The basic point? Don't fight the system, work with it. If you prepare effectively, you won't beep the magnetometer and be subjected to the delay and embarrassment of standing there with your arms out while they take a more in-depth look at you.

The TSA's Web site is a good source of information, but actually talking to TSA personnel at any airport is even better. They'll be delighted to help you fine-tune your own personal approach and procedures so you scoot through with minimal disruption every time.

This is just a thumbnail primer, but the point is, treat the airport departure experience as an obstacle course you have to prepare for. Make the needed decisions and use the same methods every time and the stress factor will decline dramatically.

John J. Nance, ABC News' aviation analyst, is a veteran 13,000-flight-hour airline captain, a former U.S. Air Force pilot and a lieutenant colonel in the Air Force Reserves. He is also a New York Times best-selling author of 17 books, a licensed attorney, a professional speaker, and a founding board member of the National Patient Safety Foundation. A native Texan, he now lives in Tacoma, Wash.