TSA launches smartphone app to make travelling easier

Published 28 April 2011

To help make a passenger’s airport experience more pleasant and to minimize delays at checkpoints, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) recently launched its MyTSA smartphone app; the app will provide travelers with official answers to the most commonly asked questions regarding security procedures at airport checkpoints; it also allows users to determine what they can or cannot bring, see airport delays in real-time, and estimate how long waits are at checkpoints; it is currently available for free on the Apple iPhone

To help make a passenger’s airport experience more pleasant and to minimize delays at checkpoints, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) recently launched its MyTSA smartphone app.

The app will provide travelers with official answers to the most commonly asked questions regarding security procedures at airport checkpoints.

With the constant changes in TSA security policies, it is often difficult to determine what items are prohibited and what are not. Rather than waiting to find out at an airport checkpoint, passengers can now use the app’s “Can I Bring?” function.

Users can type in the item they plan on bringing, and the feature will tell them if they can bring it or not and whether it needs to be packed in a checked bag or a carry-on.

The app also taps into a feed from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to allow passengers to get real-time updates on delays at all U.S. airports.

Other features include a guide which provides travel tips on topics like flying with children, carrying liquids on board, special medical needs, and packing tips.

The MyTSA app also harnesses the power of crowd-sourcing with its “Security Wait Times” feature. Users can enter how long their wait time was at certain airport checkpoints to allow others to estimate how long they will have to wait at a certain checkpoint.

The MyTSA app is currently available for free on the Apple iPhones at the app store.