Gone are the days when friends and family could walk you to your gate and you could board an airplane without a detailed airport security check. (For you youngsters, yes, that actually happened once ...

If you've ever traveled by air, you've surely experienced airport security. Before boarding, your luggage is passed through an X-ray machine, and passengers also have to go through a full-body scanner ...

Passengers can decline a facial scan and request a standard ID verification process instead. It is also legal to opt out of the full-body scanner, which will result in a physical pat-down by a TSA ...