The spokesperson for the TSA in Iowa and other Midwest states says they made it through the first day of the Real ID requirement without any real issues.
“We saw smooth operations at airports across the region, no major disruption, and the majority of passengers in compliance, which is great news,” according to Jessica Mayle . Those who haven’t flown in a while and haven’t upgraded their driver’s license to a Real ID do have other options like a passport to get on an airplane. “If you don’t have a passport, go to our list at tsa.gov, we have a few other forms of acceptable ID,” Mayle says. “But if you go through that and you realize they don’t have anything that’s going to work, you still may be able to fly. We just say give yourself some extra time because we are giving those passengers extra screening at the checkpoint.”
Mayle isn’t surprised there are some people who haven’t made the change to their driver’s license. “You know, I think there are people who think, hey, maybe I have a passport and I don’t mind using that. I only travel a few times a year. Or I never fly, so I’m totally fine keeping a standard ID. I think people sort of have their own circumstances. I don’t think we ever expect to get 100 percent national compliance on Real ID. But what matters for TSA is that you’re bringing something acceptable to the checkpoint,” she says.
Mayle says don’t compound your ID problem by having something that’s unacceptable in your carry on bag. “Passengers who are not in compliance, if you’re gonna face a delay to deal with your I-D issue, you really don’t want to face a delay because of something you packed in your bag as well. So if you’re trying to get through the checkpoint, you’re trying to start your vacation, do what you can to prepare and make sure that you’re not doing anything that’s gonna slow you down at the checkpoint,” Mayle says. Mayle says you should start with an empty bag and that will cut down on the possibility that you will have something in it that you can’t take on the plane.