You need to be at the airport at least 90 minutes in advance because flying is now a brave new world of queuing. The lines to clear security before the concourse can get pretty ridiculous. And the days of having someone come with you to keep you company at the gate are gone - it's passengers only on the concourses these days.

Things I do to make clearing the lines easier: make sure the name on my ticket matches the name on my ID precisely, wear shoes I can slip on and off quickly (they go through the luggage scanner now), follow the liquid/gel restrictions to the letter (only as many 3 oz or smaller containers as will fit in a 1 qt plastic bag, with exceptions for prescription medication), and make sure I can easily get my laptop out of my bag, because that has to go through the scanner separately. If the airport you're flying out of provides updates about the length of security lines online, you might want to keep an eye on those and adjust your arrival time accordingly. I also bring a book and/or my iPod with me to kill time in the line.

On the plus side, if you have access to a printer, you can now check in from your home or office up to 24 hours in advance and skip the worst of the lines at the ticket counter (or bypass it entirely if you're not checking luggage).

And speaking of luggage - most people now carry the largest carry-on they can get away with to avoid paying luggage fees on domestic flights. So the overhead bins fill up pretty quickly and people who board later end up getting large bags checked at the gate. If you're concerned about getting off the plane quickly as possible at your transfer point or destination, it's worth your while to be at the gate in advance and to board as early in your group as possible.

You can't take any liquids through security. You can take an empty bottle which you can refill from one of the public fountains.

You can take small quantities of toiletries in your carry-on - any drugstore will sell miniatures in sizes acceptable to the TSA.

You need to show photo ID - passport or driver's license.

At security you need to remove shoes, belts and jackets, take keys/phones, etc., from pockets and put them all in a tray to go through the scanner.

If you have a laptop, you have to take it out of its case and put it in the tray as well.

If you also have a carry-on bag, this has to go through the scanner. Do not lock your bag. If you are checking in a bag, you have to leave it unlocked, or use a special TSA lock (which you can buy anywhere that sells luggage/locks).

As you line up, you get everything ready so you can put it all in the trays and then you walk through the body scanner, waiting for the cue to come forward from the TSA staff. Watch what other people are doing and you'll soon get the idea.

You have to give yourself 90 minutes because if there's a queue, it can take ages to get through security.

Also, some airports are huge and the walk from security to the gate can take 10-15 minutes.

It's also for the airline's convenience, because they tend to overbook and may have a policy that they can re-sell any seats for which a boarding pass has not been issued by a certain time before takeoff.

Is it too late to book a train, instead?

Yes, the time required prior to boarding the plane varies greatly from airport to airport. But even at the tiny places, you'll need to be there at least 45 minutes early, as you need to wait around in the passenger area for 30+ minutes prior to departure (per TSA regs or somesuch). My wife and I arrived that early to what seemed like a vacant terminal, and were told we "just made it." We checked in, dropped off our luggage, passed through the scanner and waited.

If you don't need specific personal items (shampoo, toothpaste), and you're going to a hotel that will supply such things, don't bother trying to get mini-sized items to put into your carry-ons. If you are wearing a belt, you might want to take it off in advance of being screened. Minimize what you have loose in your pockets. Wear easy-to-slip-off shoes.

Where are you going this weekend, WolfDaddy?

Oh, that's right! YOU'RE COMING TO NEW ORLEANS! WOOT!

But even at the tiny places, you'll need to be there at least 45 minutes early

Many years ago, I booked a short (and absurdly inexpensive --- less than the bus) short flight, just a hop from one tiny airport to the next tiny airport a hundred miles south. The ticket agent (from the local airport) told me several times that I was required to show up at least 20 minutes in advance and that no refunds would be offered for a missed flight.

As was my habit then, I arrived and checked in an hour early. Twenty minutes before our flight time, the pilot walked through the waiting area and asked "Everyone ready? Let's go!" With a wave, he shepherded us onto the little plane and off we went, leaving behind anyone who arrived 19 minutes or less before the flight time. That explained the repeated warnings to be on time!

I don't think any flight, no matter how small, would be so casually scheduled now, but it certainly made an impression on me.

I certainly recommend checking in about two hours prior to the flight. Waiting in the terminal for a while is certainly better than missing the flight because of a long security line. The airline might not even let you check in if you arrive too close to the flight time.

The BF and I always use our time waiting in the security line to take off belts, jewelry, watches, etc. and put them in our carry-on bags as to not set off the metal detector. I recommend putting your pocket contents in your bag too (phone, money clip), so you have less of a chance forgetting to collect these items on the other side of the x-ray scanner.

You will have to remove your shoes and place them directly on the conveyor belt (people got yelled at for putting them in a bin the last time I flew), and laptops go in a bin as others mentioned. Your one quart baggie of liquids and gels also goes in a bin.

I keep my boarding pass and ID with me as I walk through the metal detector. I've been told that I don't have to do this, but I feel uneasy being separated from them while going through security.

When we flew to Miami in May, I did get patted down at the security checkpoint. It was non-intrusive, but this was a new security measure I hadn't seen before.

Oh, and I also make it a point to gather everything and then get out of the way before putting myself back together. Some airports have benches so you can sit down and put your shoes on and stow your liquids and laptop again.

And whatever you do, don't reach your hand into the grate/cage cover thing over the end of the x-ray machine to get your stuff. Wait until it's fully clear of the devide before collecting it. You'll get yelled at for sticking your hands in, even though it's not a scanning area of the machine.

Just echoing everyone's good advice, except to add one thing: scope out a map of the terminals/airports you'll be using to see if you have a choice of multiple checkpoints to get through to the gate area. Often it will be a total zoo at one end of the terminal and like a Zen monastery at the other, and you can save heaps of time. Also, make yourself a sandwich or something with fresh, tasty ingredients for the flight - airplane food these days is nearly all for-purchase-only, even drinks. The empty-bottle-for-water-to-fill-from-a-fountain idea above is one I heartily endorse. :)

Twenty minutes before our flight time, the pilot walked through the waiting area and asked "Everyone ready? Let's go!"

My flight back from Juneau last month left 20 minutes early because 1. it was ready and 2. everyone who had bought a ticket was accounted for and ready.

The two hours early advice is good as a general guideline, but if you get to know airports you fly out of regularly, you can sometimes shorten that wait time significantly (esp at small airports). I can usually swing giving myself about 45 mins at ONT, for example. I don't want to cause you to miss any flights though, so proceed with caution!

Definitely bring an empty water bottle and fill it up at a water fountain. And if you're going to want food, bring your own.

Oh ALSO, I once checked into Southwest with less than 30 mins before takeoff, and they told me that past that time limit, they can no longer guarantee that checked baggage will make it onto the flight. I don't know if that's relevant to you.

And yeah. The fees for checked baggage have made it so that everyone (understandably) brings everything into the cabin, which is so, so, so annoying - and which is a good reason to fly Southwest, because they don't charge for your first two items!

If you're flying Southwest, check in online as soon as possible (24 hours before departure) in order to get the best group number so you can board earliest. If you're flying Continental, know that they always board back to front, so if you want to be guaranteed overhead bin space, don't pick a seat at the front of the plane when you check in online (24 or 48 hours before departure, I forget). You'll have to wait longer to deplane, though, so it's a tradeoff. Other airlines may have their own quirks.

WOW! Thanks for all the valuable advice. I'm putting all the stuff I'd normally carry in my pockets into a carry-on and probably won't wear a belt til after I get to the hotel! Since I am flying Southwest I'll check my main bag. Even as far back as '98, overhead bin stuffing made getting off the plane a maddening experience. I can only imagine what it's like now. But I guess I'll find out tomorrow because YES COLDCHEF I'M COMING TO NEW ORLEANS!

Twenty minutes before our flight time, the pilot walked through the waiting area and asked "Everyone ready? Let's go!"
Back in the days when I flew a lot more ... mainly between small to medium sized cities in California to train people how to use that newfangled contraption called "the internet" I'd fly on a lot of "puddle-jumper" type planes. The smallest one had my knees separated from the pilot by just a partition. Once we'd leveled off, he passed back to me a huge bag of potato chips and said "in-flight meal! Pass it back!" I found that hysterical.

Twenty minutes before our flight time, the pilot walked through the waiting area and asked "Everyone ready? Let's go!"
Several months ago, I was flying from Chinchilla to Brisbane. The pilot walked into the terminal (ie the local aero club clubhouse), picked up the slip of paper with all the passengers names ticked, said 'well, looks like we're all here, may as well bugger off. Follow me' and walked out the door onto the tarmac.

While going through the pre-flight checks, he handed a set of headphones to a person sitting in the front row and said 'if the shit hits the fan, I'll talk to you and you talk to the other passengers to tell them what to do'.

And don't forget the most important security issue of all.

≡ Click to see image ≡