I guess I got a bit snippy, huh? Sorry.

There was a period of a few months shortly after Richard Reid was arrested where the TSA cared about metal in shoes. If they thought you'd beep, they asked you to take 'em off. If your shoes then beeped, they'd start the gropefest (this was also before TSA developed antigroping guidelines).

Over time, the policies started having less and less to do with whether your shoes have any metal in them and everything to do with (1) the arbitrary policy at that particular airport, and (2) the whim of the carnival barker standing by the metal detector that day. Or at least that's how it seems to 90% of the super-frequent travelers on this board. Nowadays the shoe policies don't seem to have anything whatsoever to do with metal.

If you'd like some background reading, I suggest searching for "shoe carnival" on this board. There are a couple of threads that go into great detail about the divergent policies at different airports, including some very interesting posts by actual TSA people (most of whom are both intelligent and thoughtful) who explain what the policy really is at their particular stations.

As you pointed out, airport friendly refers to the lack of metal in the shoes. I've seen a lot of "airport friendly" shoes at stores around here that had soles greater than 1 inch. Those, by TSA's profile, would still have to be removed or face extra screening.

And as you pointed out, at shoe carnival airports, it doesn't matter what shoe you're wearing. No shoes is a "safe" shoe. :rolleyes:

As a doctor I am interested to know what dreadful diseases people are trying to avoid with all this complex shoe swopping? Perhaps a pair of socks may be useful for those who are anxious about this. I am quite happy with a high level of security. Agressive and rude behaviour although not confined to the US does seem to be very prevalant amonst TSA US staff. Smiling and being nice oftens throws them a bit I find as does asking if they have had a hard day.

Precisely. Take the initiative to be friendly and one usually gets the same in return. Of course there will always be rude folks, but that's life.

I have been confused by this too. I get a twinge of unease when I go barefoot through the screening in the summer, because I have had to remove my flip flops at ORD, but it's no worse than walking around a public swimming pool, or anywhere else I may end up barefooted.

Modern society is full of fear - if it's not germs, than it's people cringing when I tell them that their delectable entirely non-organic airport sandwich has to go through the X-Ray...

...You are aware that all this stuff was already zapped by radiation to kill germs, then flash frozen, then thawed out again and nuked in a microwave before you paid 9 bucks for it? And by the way, d'you know what genes they splice into tomatos?..

I always remind people that whenever they inhale, 40% of the particulates in the air are dandruff and skin flakes from other people! And just think of that plane with it's recirculated oxygen!..

...Oh well, you think most about that which is most tangible, I suppose...

So had anyone printed the rules below from the TSA website and told the screener to learn his rules already:

TSA Shoe Screening Policy

You are NOT REQUIRED to remove your shoes before you enter the walk-through metal detector. However, TSA screeners may encourage you to remove them before entering the metal detector as many types of footwear will require additional screening even if the metal detector DOES NOT alarm.

Footwear that screeners will encourage you to remove because they are likely to require additional screening:

Boots
Platform shoes (including platform flip-flops)
Footwear with a thick sole or heel (including athletic shoes)
Footwear containing metal (including many dress shoes)

Footwear that screeners are less likely to suggest you remove includes:

"Beach" flip-flops
Thin-soled sandals (without metal)

TIP: Since a thorough screening includes x-ray inspection of footwear, wearing footwear that is easily removable helps to speed you through the screening process.

Wow- I'm surprised how much discussion this post generated. I wanted to report that departing MDT I wore a big smile and my beach flip flops. A screener just commented "good choice" when he saw me put them on. On my return from DFW I did the same with no issues.

I did want to add that at DFW they were doing a lot of additional screening. I saw many people being asked to step aside and being wanded. This was at 5am.

Thanks again for the info.

Are you meaning to say that there are no diseases that can be gotten off of a dirty floor?

The biggest thing I'd be worried about are bacterial infections, like staph. Just going back to my wrestling days, I remember guys getting staph infections off the mat, despite regular cleanings. This may get down to a hygeine issue (ie in a wrestler's case, showering after practice), but then again, there are a lot of people out there that don't practice good hygeine. Maybe you've sat next to one on a flight? :)

I'd also be worried about getting plantars warts too.

Are these OMG my foot's going to fall off diseases? Of course not, but they're definitely ones I can live without.

Then, not counting diseases, I don't like the idea, sox or not, of deshoeing when it's been rainy or snowy so the floors are soaked. Or people coming out of filthy bathrooms and then walking through those areas. Or the occasional pet mess from a nervous dog getting screened, which TSA may or may not clean up.

If you wish to remove your shoes, that of course, is your perrogative. I hope you see why I don't.

Wrestling mats are porous and prone to bacterial contamination. Plus wrestlers sweat all over them and then touch them with their hands and rub their eyes or wipe their noses.

The floor in the airport is usually made of tile or some other relatively non-porous surface, and unless you have open wounds on your feet, you're unlikely to pick up any major germs just walking through the WTMD, since you don't use your feet to touch any mucous membranes through which the germs can get into your body.

The touchscreen on the airline's kiosk and the counter surface on the GA's gate podium actually probably have more germs (because people paw them with their hands after sneezing, etc.) than the floor by the WTMD.

Which is not to say that we should have to walk through barefoot. But I think a lot of people on these boards just have really odd issues with bare feet.

And of course, that varies by airport. BWI's security area is all carpeted, and I can honestly say it hasn't looked like the carpet in a very long time. Even at airports that are tiled, like SLC, there are usually carpets put down in those areas to make the shoeless walk more comfortable.

Plantars warts don't need to be on a porous surface to be transmitted from person to person. It's one reason I don't walk barefoot in locker rooms (shower area or not) or other similar public areas.

Very true. I usually try to use the elite lines because of that. :)

Some more than others. :)

I hate the shoe carnival as much as anyone and I do try to resist it as much as possible, but it always strikes me funny when people justify their resistance by avoiding germs, bacteria, etc.

As mentioned before the door handle in the cab you took to the airport, check-in kiosk, 1-dollar bills in your wallet you used to pay for the NY Times and so on are much more hazardous to your health than walking bare footed.

This took me a while to learn, but as a father of 9-month old son I've finally realized that you (him) need(s) to build immunity somehow. Whether it's putting your pacifier back into your mouth after dropping it into a floor or walking through security bare-footed.

Not to say that I don't still argue about the shoes with TSA every time I got through.

Same here. I'm not a germaphobe - my resistance to removing my shoes is due to the fact that they don't meet the profile and don't contain a shred of metal, so no need to remove them, BECAUSE THEY DON'T CONTAIN A BOMB, screener. ;)

Yet every now and then, a thug who should be working as a prison guard instead of as an airport screener insists, no - recommends - that they come off anyway. Screw that.

Even the profile is the product of infantile "Every shoe may have a bomb in it" kinda thinking. Serious heavy boots, yes. Relatively thin-soled shoes that people wear every day, no. IIRC, even Bart agrees that the profile itself is flawed.

I generally agree with this. I didn't mean to imply that the floor was my only reason for protesting the shoe carnival. That doesn't change the fact that I still don't want to walk on a gross floor if I don't have to. :)

I have an 18 month old and I'm well aware of germs. :) That doesn't mean that I shouldn't avoid them when possible.

For me, the big reason is like everyone else's here: you DON'T have to remove them. TSA even says so. If they contain no metal and aren't profile, I'm not taking them off. I'm not taking them off even if they are profile. I'd rather take the swab and be done with it, while I wait for my wife to put her shoes on. :)

And I should qualify that Mrs. Super doesn't after the hassle she had with removing shoes and stuff at DCA and I got thru the line way before she did even with a secondary. :D

This is what sucks the most. If you're going to force someone to deal with the shoe shine, just be upfront about it and stop this "I recommend you take them off" nonsense. Call it what it is -- a threat. A recommendation which will become an ultimatimum if you walk two feet farther is not a recommendation, it's a threat.