Wearing Heels Thru Airport Security

[IAMOUT]

My experience has been good with 4.5" stacked heel cowboy boots and stacked heeled boots like my grey ones in my photos.  But, what are your experiences with going thru wearing stiletto  heels?  I look forward to hearing your responses...

[Pumped]

Why would airport security be any challenge? TSA would not even blink. They just watch the tubs of shoes and clothing go through the scanners. They will not even know who's shoes they are. The only conflicts, if any, would be with the general public.

[Shyheels]

I have never worn stilettos and I do not live or travel in the US so my observations might not be totally relevant here, but I do travel a lot. Because of the places I go, I often travel in hiking boots (easier than to pack them) and I know that anyone wearing boots of any kind invariably has to take them off.

Shoes go straight through, be they trainers, sandals, brogues or stilettos. At least over here, and in Asia, Afrca and Australia. 

If you are wondering about what security staff think, if you were to wear stilletos, I doubt they would give it a second thought if they even noticed it at all. They are busy, there's lots of people and anyway, if they did notice, I expect they've seen it all.

You might want to be careful wearing stilettos in the middle east, where they are not so tolerant of that kind of thing. If you routed through Dubai, for example, and not actually going there but just transiting, they make you go through security again (twice) and that could get sticky if you were a guy wearing stilettos.

[hhboots]

thighhighboots, assuming you were just talking about flying within the US... as Pumped said, you put your shoes in the bin, no matter what type they are.  So the agents will just see random shoes in a bin without any attachment to any specific person.  The only part that sometimes gets awkward, for me anyway, is putting them back on after, with lots of people around to watch.   But, if that part doesn't bother you, then it should just be like any other day in heels to be honest.

[Shyheels]

Does everybody have to take off their shoes and put them separately through the detector in the US? Over here you need to do that only if you are wearing boots, hence my earlier comments.

[mlroseplant]

6 hours ago, Shyheels said:

Does everybody have to take off their shoes and put them separately through the detector in the US? Over here you need to do that only if you are wearing boots, hence my earlier comments.

Yes, all shoes of any sort (including sandals) must come off and go through the x-ray machine in the U.S.  In Asia, I've never had to take shoes or boots off at all.

[Shyheels]

In Australia you can carry liquids through as well. Funnily enough, although security is much less in-your-face in Australia, I get a sense that they are very efficient. 

[Rockpup]

TSA has seen it all before, but you might get a smile for breaking up the monotiny of their day as you remove/put on your heels.

[IAMOUT]

Thanks for all of your input everyone.  I am traveling from Denver to Houston this week and I was planning on wearing my stiletto boots to the airport and through security.   I will update you all on how it all goes.  

[Sydheel]

17 hours ago, Shyheels said:

Shoes go straight through, be they trainers, sandals, brogues or stilettos. At least over here, and in Asia, Afrca and Australia. 

Not quite so anymore. Many heeled shoes and the famous RM Willuams boots have a metal strengthening piece in them from the heel. Plus the inner part of a good stiletto is normally a metal tube.

plus on boots with zips etc

i travel a fair bit domestically here in AUS and have been pinged several times. 2 weeks ago i beeped and got sent back. Had to sit and pull up jeans. Take off long boots with 8cm stacked heel. Put yhem through and try again. Then you have to sit and pop them back on

i normally take them off in advance and pop them through the scanner but forgot this time. 

The girl running the scanner just smiled and said i love those boots

[HappyinHeels]

Certain people (75+ or <10 years old) don't have to remove shoes. The shoes move through with the rest of your pocket possessions in bins. There is a step where you step into the booth and raise your arms above your head and that is done without your shoes. I suppose if you're wearing hosiery and have your toenails polished then it may be visible until your shoes are back on. This, I believe, is the moment of most apprehension by those curious about it. Here's the better question: If you got out of your car, your taxi, or your train and walked into that same airport in your high heels why now be suddenly concerned about being seen at the security checkpoint??  Your concern has to follow some logical pattern. More evidence, I believe, the most formidable checkpoint is the one we submit ourselves to. Up Up Up and away heels and all!!!    HappyinHeels

[Shyheels]

2 hours ago, Sydheel said:

Not quite so anymore. Many heeled shoes and the famous RM Willuams boots have a metal strengthening piece in them from the heel. Plus the inner part of a good stiletto is normally a metal tube.

plus on boots with zips etc

i travel a fair bit domestically here in AUS and have been pinged several times. 2 weeks ago i beeped and got sent back. Had to sit and pull up jeans. Take off long boots with 8cm stacked heel. Put yhem through and try again. Then you have to sit and pop them back on

i normally take them off in advance and pop them through the scanner but forgot this time. 

The girl running the scanner just smiled and said i love those boots

Ah, yes, the old prejudice against boot-wearers at the security checkpoint. I've yet to experience it in Australia.

I've noticed that you travel quite a bit.

Although I live in the UK I travel a fair bit in Australia (something like 20 domestic flights within Australia in the past year) and have never been pulled up. I've been wearing hiking boots but they do not seem to have any metal, so that may be why I've gotten away. I never volunteer anything.  Here in Britain if they even see you are wearing boots, metal or no, off they come.

I have another big tranche of flights in Australia coming up so I guess I'll be testing my luck if things have changed.

Edited August 28, 2016 by Shyheels

[Sydheel]

Let me know when your here

might meet up for a beer, (i can get yours warmed up) lol

[Shyheels]

I hit Sydney four times over the next few months.

Definitely cold beer in Australia - I've not gone that far native up here, although it is true that well-made British ales need to be room temperature for the full flavours to come through.  

[kikepa]

I've traveled through several countries on four continents in heels.  That has always seemed to be the least of my worries, as things are largely anonymous and security just isn't concerned about folks like us.

[robbiehhw]

Never had a problem. I assume most of the time now they press the "female scanner button" for me, but even before transition i had no issues. Ankle boots with modest to medium heel height is part of my travel attire in cooler weather. Sandals and wedge sandals in the summer.

[KneeBooted]

So I recently acquired TSA precheck here in the states for two reasons.

First, I was wishing to reduce the time waiting in the ridiculously long lines to be scanned.

Second, as I am still sometimes uncomfortable with my heeling in public areas, I also was hoping that with the precheck and not needing to take shoes off, I'd be good to go.

I was wrong about the second part. It turns out even my new ankle boots from Franco Sarto that only have a little metal zipper and nothing else, set off the metal detector. No big deal because they look metro and not very feminine. But then on my way back from SF, I decided to wear my naturalizer knee highs, knew with the metal detail and zipper they would set off the metal detector. I said oh well who cares, and when in line just went ahead and took them off. No one made any negative remarks, just two women asking why I was taking my shoes off. I told them I knew they would set off the metal detector. The only other reaction was the one girl smiled when she saw what i was actually wearing as shoes.

[Sydheel]

5 hours ago, KneeBooted said:

No one made any negative remarks, just two women asking why I was taking my shoes off. I told them I knew they would set off the metal detector. The only other reaction was the one girl smiled when she saw what i was actually wearing as shoes.

And the end result.......

you grow another small step in the heeling journey with the added confidence of realising that:

So few, actually notice and no one cares. 

You get a knowing smile or a 'nice heels' comment every so often.

but for you now, airport screening holds no fears, 

Welcome to the mile high heeler club

well done

[Rockpup]

No problem today with 3" Coke Haan boots

 

(starting to notice a lack of looks, maybe I should have worn stilettos)

[HappyinHeels]

Rockpup,

Since you live in Florida I'm curious why you'd wear boots in September. It's not even cold here in Wisconsin yet. Florida is sandal country. Polish those toes and strap on those sandals! I saw some great wedges in the Miami airport when returning on business from Belize in May.

HappyinHeels

[Thighbootguy]

3 hours ago, Rockpup said:

starting to notice a lack of looks

Annoying isn't it.

[CAT]

7 minutes ago, Thighbootguy said:

Annoying isn't it.

Very annoying !

[Shyheels]

But isn't that what equality looks like?

[pebblesf]

On ‎8‎/‎28‎/‎2016 at 5:11 PM, thighhighboots said:

Thanks for all of your input everyone.  I am traveling from Denver to Houston this week and I was planning on wearing my stiletto boots to the airport and through security.   I will update you all on how it all goes.  

Sure wish you were on one of my flights buddy, but am guessing you are going on United...Don

[pebblesf]

I wear cowboy boots for work, but my bag usually has at least three pairs of high heel boots for layovers....Occasionally, as my bag passes through the scanner, the operator will seem confused as my bag passes through and ask:  "Is this your bag?"  I smile and say yes, hoping to give the TSA folks something to talk about....

[Rockpup]

15 hours ago, Shyheels said:

But isn't that what equality looks like?

*ding*

[robbiehhw]

On 9/24/2016 at 5:48 PM, Shyheels said:

But isn't that what equality looks like?

Yep! I will take equality over being noticed any day.

[krazykev64]

On 24/09/2016 at 6:46 PM, Rockpup said:

No problem today with 3" Coke Haan boots

 

(starting to notice a lack of looks, maybe I should have worn stilettos)

your boots are very similar to mine.  Only yesterday i went to buy some timber at the local builders merchants.  No problem at all

[blueparrot]

I got in trouble at Laguardia once over my boots.  I was in the pre-check line where you normally don't remove shoes.  I had on Steve Madden boots with a plate in the sole.  I didn't know about it and it set off the alarm in the metal detector.  I had to go back and remove them, holding up the line.  I knew to remove them after that.