Hanging Items Could Delay Luggage at Airport

The luggage carousels at Nashville International Airport will be at their fullest next/this week, with the onslaught of Thanksgiving travel. But officials are warning that a popular method of making your bag stand out from the rest could cause problems.

A brightly colored bandanna or a length of polka dot ribbon tied around a handle makes it easy to tell one black bag from another. But it also increases the chance of a suitcase being delayed as it moves through the Nashville

Spokeswoman Emily Richards says anything hanging off of suitcases can cause trouble as it moves through the airport’s new automated luggage screening system.

“It could basically get hung in the belts. These are conveyer belts under the airport that are carrying this baggage, and for oversized bags, a lot of those are put in tubs, but for typical luggage, it is not.”

If a bag has to be removed from the belt, it also has to checked by hand—and that takes extra time.

Richards says small tags are ok, but they need to measure four inches or less. And people can still mark their bags with colorful items that stay flat on the surface of the luggage, like a bright strip of tape or a strap wrapped securely around a suitcase.

The screening lines for people are moving slower than before, too. That’s because the familiar metal detectors are gone. In their place are the controversial machines that perform full body scans which notice everything in your pockets, not just metal objects. Richards says passengers are often surprised at how much they need to remove before walking through the machines.

“Paper, a business card, a receipt in your pocket can obstruct the view for the screeners.”

Those who prefer not to go through the body scan machine can instead opt for a pat-down. The protocol for those was recently changed, as well, and now requires officers to touch travelers in places that used to be skipped, including the chest and groin.