my 10 year old had a body search at the airport.

[Kimberlyfamilyfv]

my 10 year old was searched by the airport screener. I believe this was computerized random check. They took one look at his airline ticket and escorted us into a different line than the others. He had to take off his socks and shoes and have his carry-on emptyed and checked.
I am not sure what it was on the ticket that labeled my son for search but know this could happen to you or yours.

 

[PRINCESS VIJA]

Thanks for posting this. It is good to know, that way I can talk to the kids and discuss this.

 

[LoriZH]

personally, i think that is ridiculous, they should be looking for terrorists and not harrassing 10 year olds! Was he upset at all? I don't know, I have been subjected to that over and over but I could care less, they make me take my shoes off they swab my baggage handles you name it but I would be a little upset if they pulled my 10 year old out of line to do that, that must have been a bit frightening.

 

[GAIL HAYDEN]

Originally posted by LoriZH
personally, i think that is ridiculous, they should be looking for terrorists and not harrassing 10 year olds! Was he upset at all? I don't know, I have been subjected to that over and over but I could care less, they make me take my shoes off they swab my baggage handles you name it but I would be a little upset if they pulled my 10 year old out of line to do that, that must have been a bit frightening.

The searches are randomly selected by computer. If you think for one moment that a terrorist would not use his own child for a pass into "heaven" or whatever, you are sadly mistaken.
This is the world we live in, unfortunately, and I am for security and I hate profiling, so, random IMHO is the way to go.

 

[Took]

My DD, now 7, seems to get selected everytime we fly! I have to admit, I hadn't thought of being outraged or anything. It's completely hit or miss. She thinks it's kind of funny.

And GAIL is right-- terrorists (as well as other fanatical groups) have been known to use children, so one can't rule anyone out.

 

[TandyR]

My then 5 year old DD was selected the last time we flew....it upset her so much it is one of the reasons we are taking the train this time.....(one of the other reasons is because we think we will have fun taking the train). It upset her but I also think random checks are the right way to go and I blame myself that she got upset because I didn't think to warn her. Next time we fly she will be older and know what to expect and I don't think it will upset her as much.

 

[Kevenswife2]

A few days ago I started explaining the security process (Possible shoes off, wand check, etc.) to my DD5. Also told her we'd walk through a metal detector like the amusement parks have. She seemed a little worried but I told her it was okay. It's hard...you want to prepare them BUT you don't want to scare them. I certainly don't want to tell her they check us to make sure noone has a bomb to 'blow up the plane', or a gun to 'kill' the pilot.

Guess now I'll have to prepare for 'random' checks. I never thought about those. Hope they don't pick her as she's shy and would be terrified!

 

[Luvdisney]

Last March my family of 4 flying out of Newport News to MCO were randomly selected. It wasn't just one of us that was selected it was the four of us. My DW, DD 14 and DS 8. All of us had to remove our shoes, jackets, unbuckle are belts and fold over the tops of our pants. They then did the wand thing all over us. All our carry on's were emptied out and searched. I figued for the return trip we would be good. Nope!! All 4 of us got selected again and went through the same routine. My 8 year old on the way down had no problem with it. But for some reason on the way back he was not happy. The tears were just flowing, I later found out the 14 y.o. said he was going to jail. Don't you just love teenagers!!!

 

[TandyR]

Selecting a whole family to me seems like a better way to deal with the random checks. I know my then 5 year old wouldn't have been so freaked if she hadn't been pulled to the side by herself (we could see her but she was in a special area by herself) and was pulled to the side with our whole family.
I hope selecting a whole family will be the way they handle it in the future.

 

[crisi]

Luvdisney,

Its possible you have a name close to a name on the "list." I have a friend who gets searched every time - they've done a cavity search on him (just once!) which is what I thought happened when I opened this thread (a cavity search on a ten year old would be horrible). Its his belief that some political activities, some international travel (Ireland and the former USSR), and his choice of profession (Irish musician - must support the IRA) got his name on the list.

I know another woman who flies extensively for business and gets pulled aside for "random" screenings every time she flies. Its reached the point that she is pretty sure it isn't random - if you fly 100 times a year and get pulled aside 100 times, it ain't random.

 

[drcmk]

Wow, Gosh, I am so glad you posted this. I hadn't given any thought to preparing my 5 & 7 year olds for a random search. I really have to give some thought to what I will say to them. ANy more advice on how to explain what and why this could happen?

 

[beattyfamily]

Right after 9/11 in December our DD age 2 got searched!

I believe the reason, though, was that she went through the metal detectors right behind my DH and you're supposed to go through one at a time.

They just pulled her aside and did the wand. She cried a little but it wasn't too bad. It was pretty funny thinking about it afterwards but at that moment we couldn't believe it was happening but we totally understood why.

 

[Sammy]

I had not even thought about preparing my kids for the possibility of searches for our flight this past September. I guess with everything else I had on my mind about getting ready for the trip, I just didn't think about it. Well, we didn't get pulled for random search, but both DD-8 and DS-11 set off the metal detectors. They were both escorted to the little glassed-in area next to the metal detectors for a "wand" search. They wouldn't let me come in with them, but I could stand at the open doors to reassure them. DD-8 was visibly upset and nervous. They made them take off their shoes and socks and made sure they had nothing in their pockets. The people doing the searches were nice and tried to be reassuring, but they can only be so sympathetic due to the nature of their jobs. They told me that DD's overalls with all the metal buttons and shoulder hooks is what set off the detector. They also said that DS's Skechers sneakers were the worst to have on because most of them have a metal shank in the sole. Just a word to the wise.....don't dress your kids in overalls with metal buttons or Skechers sneakers!!

Sammy

 

[Kimberle]

{{hugs}} to your ds.

This is such a tough subject. Where I live (NYC area) there have been children used as drug smugglers. About a year ago, a 10yo had swallowed a bunch of condom's filled with drugs. He, of cource, didn't have a "clue" what they were. He just did what an adult told him.

Luckly, he was fine. He was placed in the custody of protective services. I'm not sure what eventually happened to him.

It is so amazing what "people" will do to their own children......

 

[DVC-Don]

The police have been nabbing children off bus's up here carrying drugs for some time.

Also, remember it was not long ago they found a loaded gun inside some toddlers teddy bear at the Orlando Airport.

 

[mcnuss]

This is the new normal, and we had better get used to it. I am sorry your child was upset, but given everything that's going on in the world today, we have to teach our kids to expect this sort of thing - and not just at airports, either. Sporting events, parades, theme parks - anywhere large crowds gather - are considered to be targets now. We cannot exempt children from searches for the reasons already articulated here. We can be outraged at the situation and the circumstances that brought us to this point, but we cannot be upset at the actions being taken to try to safeguard us. My DD has wanted to be wanded everytime she has traveled, and ironically, has never been selected. She is very fascinated by the gadgets they use! I travel an awful lot, and I get pulled every 10-20 flights or so. One way tickets seem to be the fastest route to the enhanced security line! One of the ways to keep from getting selected is to get a frequent flyer number and attach it to your record. It helps to create your traveler profile and you'll be less likely to be randomly picked. Basically, there are triggers for selection, but mostly it's a computer thing, and the computer has no idea how old the traveler is.

The best thing though is for you to have explained the possibility of this to your child ahead of time. And if your child is selected, for you to remain calm. The other day I watched as a woman voiced her outrage and displeasure that her child had been selected, all the while the kid is standing there watching mom look like a lunatic. The search would have been over in 2 minutes but instead bc she argued with them, the kid had to stand there for 10 mins while they got the supervisor. Now that would upset anyone!

Last, crisi, while I do not dispute your account of your friend's run-ins at Security and the existence of a list somewhere, I'm pretty sure TSA does not conduct cavity searches in US airports. They don't have the legal authority nor, from a practical standpoint, anyplace to do this in most places. Was your friend traveling internationally? Because INS & Customs do have that authority...

 

[Castillo Mom]

This is an excellent thread. Just last week I purchased our airline tickets and when I told my boys, I explained the process we'd go through at the airport and having to walk through metal detectors like when we go to sporting events or theme parks. I didn't even think to tell them that they may be subjected to a more thorough search. I'll definitely go over this with them.

As others have mentioned, we're living in difficult times and just have to learn to get used to the extra security measures for our own good.

 

[crisi]

He does travel internationally - and has done so recently - so he may have gotten his rubber glove treatment at the hands of customs or INS. The conversation was pretty casual and I didn't go into any deep detail. It was more the "why am I so threatening that they pull me aside everytime" conversation.

 

[goofy4tink]

We normally fly out of Logan in Boston. Now when we fly we automatically remove our shoes. I put everything in our carry-ons in see-thru baggies. It's much easier to get the stuff back in the bag! We've also been wanded. But, that was at Sanford. My dd was taken by surprise but she did fine. The woman doing the wanding did let me know before she checked her that she was going to. That helped. THese are sad times we live in but I would much rather be safe than sorry. I figure anything they can do to make the skies safer is fine with us!!

 

[mcnuss]

If your child has never been to an airport or has not traveled since 9/11, and you can get to one easily, why not make a field trip of it and go a few weeks before just so they can observe the process? Then it won't be a surprise on a day when everyone is already excitable.

Just a little brainstorm!