EXTRA SECURITY

AIRLINES

■ Check for travel restrictions before your trip through your airline or other resources. Delta Air Lines has an interactive map to show travel requirements for different destinations. Southwest Airlines lists on its website its destinations with operational restrictions. The CDC also has travel health notices for different countries and the State Department also issues country- specific travel advisories. You can use airlines’ apps and websites to check in online and seek customer service, reducing touchpoints and crowds at the airport.

AIRPORT SECURITY

■ Hartsfield- Jackson has three checkpoints in the domestic terminal, including the Main checkpoint, the North checkpoint, and a newly expanded and reopened South checkpoint.

At the international terminal, the main security checkpoint is closed and the airport is instead using the lower- level security screening checkpoint.

You may be asked to briefly shift your mask for the TSA officer to verify your identity.

SECURITY LINE CHOICES:

Standard, Precheck and Clear. You can check the airport’s website at atl. com/ times for security wait times. Lines may look longer than normal because of distancing between people in queues.

■ STANDARD: Standard TSA lines require travelers to remove their coats, shoes and belts; take permitted liquids out of carryons, and remove large electronic devices ( including tablets and laptops) from bags.

■ TSA PRECHECK: The TSA Precheck lines at the domestic terminal will be at South checkpoint for the Thanksgiving travel period, instead of at the Main checkpoint as they have been in the past.

TSA Precheck offers expedited screening, with the chance to keep on your shoes, belt and jacket and leave liquids in your suitcase. It costs $ 85 for five years.

TSA has been encouraging travelers to sign up for Precheck before holiday travel this year to get through screening more efficiently and reduce touchpoints such as the need to handle a bin in many cases.

You can apply online and schedule an appointment at a Precheck enrollment center. There is a registration center in HartsfieldJackson’s Concourse A, as well as other locations inside Staples stores.

CLEAR:

■ Biometric ID technology firm Clear operates specially designated security lines for its members at Hartsfield- Jackson. The company sells memberships for $ 179 a year, with discounts for Delta Skymiles members.

Clear has shifted to touchless identity verification, in which members verify their identities through an iris scan or facial recognition.

The Clear line at the South checkpoint is now for Precheck- enrolled Clear members. The Clear line at the Main checkpoint is for non- Precheck Clear members going through standard security.

TSA SMART LANES:

Most of the lanes at the Transportation Security Administration’s domestic security checkpoints are automated screening lanes.

The“smart” automated screening lanes are aimed at speeding the process of security screening, but they require a different process for travelers and can take some getting used to.

If you are in the domestic terminal at an automated screening lane with larger bins and metal conveyors, here’s what you need to know:

■ 1) If you’re next in line and any of the binloading stations opens up, proceed to it. Don’t just wait behind the person in front of you if there is an empty station available.

■ 2) Everything must go into a bin, including roll- aboard suitcases and other carry- on luggage. And be aware that oversized carryon luggage won’t fit, even though the bins are 25% larger.

■ 3) Push the bin onto the conveyor belt, which will automatically move it into the X- ray machine. Then walk through the checkpoint — you don’t have to wait for the person in front of you to finish.

■ 4) If a bin’s contents need to be manually screened, it is automatically bumped over to an alternate conveyor belt for an officer’s inspection. If your bin clears the X- ray machine, retrieve your belongings on the other side as usual.

INTERNATIONAL

Take escalators or elevators down to the lower level from the check- in area to get to the lower- level security checkpoint.

This checkpoint is normally used by arriving passengers who flew in on international flights, passed through Customs and must pass through security screening to board connecting flights. But amid the sharp decline in international travel due to COVID- 19 and quarantine requirements, the checkpoint is now being used for security screening of departing international passengers.

REAL ID DELAY:

Amid the COVID- 19 pandemic, the federal government has delayed plans to start requiring travelers to have “Real ID” designated driver licenses or IDS to get through airport security checkpoints. The “Real ID” requirement will now take effect October 1, 2021. Most Georgia drivers have the updated Real ID licenses with a star in the top right corner but those with older licenses that are not Real ID compliant should get new licenses if they plan to use them during air travel in October 2021 or later.