Archive · 11 Sep 2026
How 9/11 Changed Airport Security and Flying Forever
Before 9/11, airports were much easier to enter and move around.
Security checks were simple and usually did not take long.
People could keep their shoes and jackets on while passing through metal detectors.
Friends and family who were not flying could go with passengers.
Jeff Price worked in airport security at Denver International Airport on September 11, 2001.
He later said that security was almost invisible at the time.
The system was designed to stay in the background.
The article presents 9/11 as the event that changed flying and airport security forever.
In the 1990s, airports were described as places travelers could enter and move through freely.
Security screening was designed to be nearly invisible and avoid slowing passengers down.
Passengers typically walked through simple metal detectors without removing shoes or jackets.
Non-passengers could accompany travelers beyond areas that later became more restricted.
Jeff Price, a former Denver International Airport security official, described the pre-9/11 system to NPR.
- Who
- Air travelers, non-passengers accompanying them, and Jeff Price, who was assistant security director at Denver International Airport on September 11, 2001.
- What
- The article describes how airport access and security worked before 9/11 and frames 9/11 as a lasting turning point for flying.
- When
- The described practices were common in the 1990s; Jeff Price held his airport role on September 11, 2001.
- Where
- Airports, including Denver International Airport.
- Why
- Pre-9/11 security was designed to remain unobtrusive and avoid slowing travelers down.
- Period described
- The 1990s, before September 11, 2001
- Security style
- Nearly invisible and designed not to slow travelers
- Screening
- Passengers used simple metal detectors
- Shoes and jackets
- Passengers generally kept them on during screening
- Non-passenger access
- Non-passengers could accompany travelers
- Expert quoted
- Jeff Price, former assistant security director at Denver International Airport
- Source cited
- NPR