Americans who fear harm from small folding knives, sports equipment, or novelty bats while flying can rest easy. The Associated Press reports that Transportation Security Administration head John Pistole has dropped plans to relax airplane security restrictions, allowing non-locking blades no longer than 2.36 inches and sports equipment like golf clubs. The TSA first announced the new policy in March, but it faced a swift backlash from flight attendants, politicians, and others, who worried that the changes would make terrorist attacks or hijackings easier. The TSA then delayed the change, which quickly slipped past its initial April 25th start date.
TSA drops plans to allow small knives on planes
is a senior tech and policy editor focused on online platforms and free expression. Adi has covered virtual and augmented reality, the history of computing, and more for The Verge since 2011.
“After getting the input from all these different constituents, I realized there was not across-the-board support that would serve us well in moving forward,” Pistole said in an interview. By scrapping the plans, the TSA plans to conserve its political capital for other fights, including expanding a pre-check program that would allow passengers to board more quickly if they had already passed a security screening.
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