I have been reading this forum ever since these new TSA procedures began. I vowed never to fly again unless it was an emergency. Well that emergency came this week. my mother got out of the hospital from knee replacement surgery last week and of course my stepfather had to leave town this week. Even though I was filled with dread thinking about what horror I might have endure at the hands of the TSA, I of course agreed to leave los angeles and fly to Nashville to take care of her.
So, I Flew out of lax on 1/26/11 on southwest airlines . while I was waiting in the security line I almost started to have a panic attack. I looked around trying to see if there was a way to avoid those rape-scan machines. They have the metal detectors set up in front and rape-scan machines behind and to the side of each metal detector. If you make the metal detector beep they put you through the rape-scan. I didn’t notice anyone being selected randomly to go through the scan machine.
Thank god I didn’t set off the metal detector and my security experience was uneventful. I fly back to L.A. on Sunday, so I will let everyone know what the security situation is like leaving from BNA.

My mother who has rheumatoid arthritis and 4 replaced joints now, will be molested every time she flies (she hasn‘t had the “enhanced” pat down yet, last time she flew was about a year ago) . It just sickens me to the core that the elderly and disabled bear the brunt of the TSA’s madness.

BNA has the MMW machines. Sometimes they are on, sometimes off. Even if they are on, they only direct a portion of the passengers through. If you enter security from the Southwest ticketing side, use the lanes to the right hand side for the TDC. These usually open to more lane options than the ones next to the falling fountains. They often have the rope lines set up so that you can cross over to any screening line you want, but sometimes not. In my experience, the middle of the security area gives the best chance of missing the MMW. If you get in a line where the MMW is being used, watch those going through the machine and try to time getting your stuff in the xray so that someone has just stepped into the scanner in front of you. They seem to run everyone through the WTMD until there is space in the scanner.

Using this technique, I have just had to opt out twice and that was because of my own stupidity and was not paying attention. I took 40 flights out of BNA last year, 20 or so since they got the scanners.

Thank you so much for the heads up on what I have to look forward to at BNA! I will be paying attention and keeping my fingers crossed.

Is BNA MMW or Backscatter? Big difference in radiation, no difference in nakedness

MMW, one security area for both concourses. No escape from at least the possibility of a scanner, but as I have observed from the area where I put my shoes back on, it appears that it is 80% WTMD, 20% scan, and a rare resolution or opt out frisk, even when they have several open. I have seen days when every scanner was roped off.