questions about flying

[MickeyPower]

I have not flown in many many years, i need some help with a few questions:

1. Do kids have to have a passport to fly from texas to florida?
2. Will they really strip hand search a 3 and 5 year old kid?

anything eles you can give me tips on would be great.

 

[telephoneman66]

1) No, you don't need a passport to travel inside the USA
2) No, they will not strip search you or anyone else, but you will have to remove your shoes and have them xrayed and pass thru a metal detector and possibly the new xray equipment, AKA porn scanners.

 

[goofy4tink]

I have not flown in many many years, i need some help with a few questions:

1. Do kids have to have a passport to fly from texas to florida?
2. Will they really strip hand search a 3 and 5 year old kid?

anything eles you can give me tips on would be great.

Seriously?? To the best of my knowledge, Texas is still part of the US. You only need a passport if you are traveling out of the US and will be reentering it..you need to prove you are a US citizen in order to get back into the country.
And strip search??? No one has been strip searched at any airport that I know of. Yes, there have been pat downs, but they certainly aren't strip searches. IF your child refuses to go through the security machines, or if they do go through and something sets the alarm off, then yes, they will most likely be subject to a pat down search. My dd has been through many pat downs. She has not needed any type of therapy afterwards.

 

[minnie mum]

Seriously?? To the best of my knowledge, Texas is still part of the US. You only need a passport if you are traveling out of the US and will be reentering it..you need to prove you are a US citizen in order to get back into the country.
And strip search??? No one has been strip searched at any airport that I know of. Yes, there have been pat downs, but they certainly aren't strip searches. IF your child refuses to go through the security machines, or if they do go through and something sets the alarm off, then yes, they will most likely be subject to a pat down search. My dd has been through many pat downs. She has not needed any type of therapy afterwards.

At first glance I was all "WHAAAAA???? Are you Kidding Me??" And then I got to thinking (always a dangerous thing)

Okay, the OPs second question was REALLY out there and has been properly answered.

But her first question is not necessarily so straight forward. You DO NOT need a passport to fly inside the US IF you are an American citizen. You SHOULD NOT need a passport to fly inside the US if you are not a citizen, but are living legally inside the US. BUT as a Canadian who lived in the US for a few years, I highly recommend that all foreign nationals always travel with their passports just in case.

 

[maxiesmom]

I'm going to leave the passport/scanner discussions for others, at least for now. Here is a tip for you: If you are traveling with another adult, have one adult go thru the scanner/metal detector first. Then send the kids thru, then an adult last. That way you have an adult on both sides to help the kids.

Also, if you put slip on shoes on your children that will speed up getting thru security immensly.

 

[CPT Tripss]

Neither a 3 year old nor a 5 year old needs photo ID. The parent does, as do all adults. That said, if a adult does not have photo ID they can still fly, it just requires more time spent with TSA, so they can determine if you are who you say you are.

Hand searches of a person's (or child's body) do occur. As PPs noted, it's when the scanner (whether the metal detector or the ones that use xray or microwave radiation) alarms. Sometimes the Airport Security Screener does a hand search "just because" even if the scanner does not alarm.

The government refuses to let people know in advance the specifics of these searches. But the uniformed person doing the hand search will narrate what is coming next. According to frequent flyers you should be prepared, and have your kids prepared, to have any and every part of the body touched. You may have to lift you shirt or blouse so that the Airport Security Screener has access to the waist band of pants or skirts. You may need to raise the hem of a dress or skirt to allow access to legs. You will probably have to remove your belt, and may need to remove your jacket, blazer, sweater, hoodie or similar garment. You should not have to strip . . .

 

[CPT Tripss]

Seriously?? To the best of my knowledge, Texas is still part of the US. You only need a passport if you are traveling out of the US and will be reentering it..you need to prove you are a US citizen in order to get back into the country.
And strip search??? No one has been strip searched at any airport that I know of. Yes, there have been pat downs, but they certainly aren't strip searches. IF your child refuses to go through the security machines, or if they do go through and something sets the alarm off, then yes, they will most likely be subject to a pat down search. My dd has been through many pat downs. She has not needed any type of therapy afterwards.

Actually there are verified cases of at least partial strip searches. The cath bag incident, some women with prostethic breasts, a couple people with prosthetic limbs and a kid deshirted come immediately to mind. These have been posted before with links.

IMO "pat down" is way to benign a term for the procedure used.