Increased security at airports is a part of life today for anyone who travels, for peace of mind and our own safety we all know it is sadly necessary, but standing in line waiting is annoying and frustrating in equal measure anyway. Of course, there is no way to skip security, but the good news is that it is possible to speed things up a bit with a few insider tips from the T.S.A. itself.

The first, and most effective, way of beating the queues is to find the airline that offers an expedited service at the airport you are using. This is tricky, as none have a universal service, for instance Delta Airlines offer a separate entrance for Delta One passengers, their Business Class equivalent, that uses a private escalator to avoid the queues. This is only at Los Angeles International though. Likewise, American Airlines Five Star Service that costs $250 per adult, which offers priority security screening to avoid the wait, while more extensively offered, this is still only available at twelve domestic and five international airports. There is the obvious cost involved, but for many the time savings can make it worthwhile, but it is the sparse availability that is perhaps the biggest issue.

The other thing that can really make a difference is signing up for the T.S.A. Precheck service, the expedited screening program. This is a service the T.S.A runs and costs $85 for five years, and is available at more than 160 domestic airports, and allows you to use a precheck security lane. The benefit here is not only less people in line, but travelers do not have to take off their shoes, belts, light jackets or have laptops looked over and so on. This makes the security process itself quicker as well as the lines, so is certainly of real benefit.

While you can schedule flights for less busy times and pick secondary airports to reduce the numbers of people you will be in line with, both add inconvenience, whereas paying for the expedited services, either the T.S.A.’s own or through an airline of one has a service that matches your trip, offers the most practical way of lessening the wait involved in security checks. Even with those measures, it is important to leave plenty of time for security checks when flying, and here at Concierge Limousine in Los Angeles we always ensure that you get to your airport quickly and stress free, ready and on time for that flight.

Also published on Medium.