WASHINGTON (BN24) — Travelers passing through U.S. airports will no longer be required to remove their shoes at security checkpoints, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem announced Tuesday, bringing an end to a practice that had become a fixture of air travel for nearly two decades.
The policy change takes effect immediately nationwide.
Noem said the Transportation Security Administration determined after a pilot program that current screening technology can effectively detect threats without passengers taking off their footwear.
“Shoe removal will no longer be standard procedure,” Noem said. “However, travelers may still be asked to remove their shoes if we think additional layers of screening are necessary.”
Mandatory shoe removal was instituted in 2006 in the aftermath of the failed attempt by Richard Reid—known as the “shoe bomber”—to blow up a transatlantic flight from Paris to Miami in December 2001.
Since then, passengers between the ages of 12 and 75 have been required to take off their shoes and place them in bins to be scanned along with carry-on bags. The policy has often been cited as one of the most visible security measures implemented after the 9/11 attacks and subsequent plots targeting commercial aviation.
The TSA said it will continue using explosive detection equipment and other screening tools to monitor footwear and other items as travelers pass through checkpoints.
