Are rules for ice packs the same on all flights?

[Dis703]

I'm flying Frontier this week with one of my children who requires we travel with a certain amount of food because of severe food allergies. I know in the past with JetBlue (and I thought this was a general TSA thing) it was fine to carry a small soft cooler with ice packs as long as the ice packs were frozen solid when we went through security.

I was on Frontiers site trying to read all the baggage info and the only thing I saw mentioning coolers was talking about dry ice packed coolers.

Anyone know if this should be an issue or do airlines make their own rules about that sort of thing? We do travel with a letter of medical necessity but have never had to show it to anyone.

TIA

 

[CarolMN]

Could you just use a pack of frozen corn or peas to keep the food cool? That way you wouldn't have to worry about the liquid/gel issue.

Once I had a small gel pack that I use to keep my meds cool. The web site said it would be OK. Huh! The TSA let me through (after she yelled at me and said I didn't need to keep my particula med cool - like she knew better than my doctor or the manufacturer). She did some kind of extra security check. When I arrived at my destination, I found that they poked a hole in my pack to do some test or something and some of the gel leaked out. What a mess! Now I use the small packs of frozen vegetables if I have to travel with meds that need to be kept cool.

 

[BadPinkTink]

I would have your own ice until TSA, at TSA throw it in the bin. Then once through, go to a restaurant or bar and ask for ice. The same on the plane. Airline crew usually have ice for drinks onboard.

 

[jsilvers]

The official word from the TSA:

Ice packs, freezer packs, frozen gel packs, and other accessories required to cool medically necessary liquids must be completely solid at the security checkpoint. If these accessories are partially frozen or slushy, they are subject to the same screening as other medically necessary liquids.​

https://www.tsa.gov/travel/special-procedures

 

[maxiesmom]

Could you just use a pack of frozen corn or peas to keep the food cool? That way you wouldn't have to worry about the liquid/gel issue.

That is what I would do too.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

The ice rule is set by TSA, not the airlines, and anything frozen solid is fine. Frozen vegetables melt so fast, they are pretty useless used as ice packs.

You can always get ice after security as well.

 

[Dis703]

The ice rule is set by TSA, not the airlines, and anything frozen solid is fine. Frozen vegetables melt so fast, they are pretty useless used as ice packs.

You can always get ice after security as well.

Thanks. That's what I was hoping. I was also worried the veggies wouldn't stay cold long enough and they'd take up more space.

I'm flying out of a teeny tiny airport so I'm not even sure if ice is available there. I think they only sell bottled drinks. MCO will be fine of course but it's more the leaving that I'm worried about. 1 hour drive, plus a couple hours in the airport plus almost 3 hours until we arrive at MCO I don't want to take a chance of things getting too warm.

If I know it's a TSA rule I'll give it a shot.

 

[maxiesmom]

The ice rule is set by TSA, not the airlines, and anything frozen solid is fine. Frozen vegetables melt so fast, they are pretty useless used as ice packs.

You can always get ice after security as well.

I think we all know there are a few TSA agents who are funny when it comes to some rules. Me, I would rather have a frozen bag of peas and be safe then only have an ice pack along and be told to toss it. But then my airport has no place past security to get ice either. Only one bagel shop and that is it.

 

[tjmw2727]

As pp's have said this is a TSA rule not an airline rule, you won't get past TSA if the ice isn't frozen per the rule quoted above. With an hour drive before you even get to the airport I am not sure I would trust that an ice pack would stay frozen, but it seems like you have done this before? If the ice pack is melting the TSA can ask you to discard it so maybe have the frozen veggie pack in addition to the ice pack as a backup? I have a dd with allergies and I have used frozen grapes in a zip lock as ice and they worked really well but we didn't have such a long drive to the airport. I would also pack as many appropriate shelf stable foods/snacks as I could find in case you have issues with the ice packs - but you prob already do )

 

[monorailsilver]

What are you packing that requires it to be cold?

My son has multiple allergies and the last time we flew we did have a checked bag so I put his earth balance butter in a cooler with an ice pack Otherwise I bought his soy milk at the resort and shipped down the rest of his food I wanted to bring for him/us.

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

If all else fails you might try the offical regulations
https://apps.tsa.dhs.gov/mytsa/cib_results.aspx?search=gel ice pack

Note that it says the pack must be COMPLETELY frozen. If there is any liquid you are out of luck (i.e., melting has occured)

And just because Agent 1 let you on last time with it does not mean agent 2 will. (Live theatre is not always predictable!)

You might want to print out the info on the link above. Sometimes it helps to train the untrained!