Airport Shoe Search

The Transportation Saftey Association's increased focus on screening shoes in recent months reflects a necessary reaction to information gathered by federal intelligence agencies.

TSA's increased focus on screening shoes in recent months reflects a necessary reaction to information gathered by federal intelligence agencies.

In order to provide a high level of security with the least amount of inconvenience, TSA has produced the following policy for the screening of footwear:

TSA does NOT require that passengers remove their shoes prior to proceeding through the security checkpoint.
However, any person that alerts while proceeding through the checkpoint will be subject to a secondary screening to determine the source of the alarm.
TSA screeners have also been trained to look for suspicious footwear that may require secondary screening regardless of whether the metal detectors alarm.

If you know that your shoes will alarm the metal detector, you may choose to take them off prior to entering the checkpoint and place them in a TSA provided bin so they may be cleared through the x-ray machines.