Asked To Pack Carry-On Luggage Neatly

There's now another reason for travelers to pack neatly when taking an airline trip. In addition to making sure your clothes aren't (overly) wrinkled at your destination... you'll also be making a TSA screener's job a bit easier.

On Monday, the Transportation Security Administration urged passengers to follow their mothers' advice, as it were, and pack items in their carry-on luggage neatly, and in layers.

Doing so will cut down on time screeners have to spend rifling through suitcases, the agency says -- cutting down on time spent searching carry-ons, and hopefully keeping lines at checkpoints moving more quickly than some glaciers.

By packing in layers, according to TSA spokeswoman Ellen Howe, passengers will also cut down on the chances their bag will be pulled aside for additional searches.

"If you eliminate clutter, it helps us get a cleaner look at the contents of a bag" on checkpoint X-ray machines, Howe told USA Today.

The program -- dubbed "SimpliFLY" by the agency -- is aimed towards persons who usually don't fly commercially, but are doing so for the holiday season... and who aren't familiar with the litany of regulations and security procedures commonplace at airports today.

Dan Castelveter, spokesman for the Air Transport Association, did not give the TSA's efforts a ringing endorsement... but says every little bit helps.

"Whether or not the (TSA) campaign is effective, the effort is certainly welcome because, with 27 million-plus people scheduled to fly over Thanksgiving, every effort to speed up the security checkpoint will help," said Castelveter.

That mixed sentiment was echoed by Kevin Mitchell, chairman of the Business Travel Coalition. Mitchell applauded the TSA's efforts to inform passengers... but added he wasn't "real optimistic" it will help speed up security lines.

"The message is a pretty sophisticated one, and it's a lot for the average person who is traveling for the first time in months to remember," Mitchell said.

One must wonder what part of "pack neatly" Mitchell doesn't feel holiday travelers will understand.

On second thought... we see his point.

FMI: www.tsa.gov, www.airlines.org