The United States has lifted the requirement to remove shoes during airport screening. The Department of Homeland Security said the rule is no longer needed thanks to technological progress and accumulated experience. The measure had been in place since the early 2000s after an attempted attack involving a “shoe bomb” in 2001.
The change applies to all domestic flights and is expected to make screening easier, reduce lines, and improve comfort. Security will remain at a high level, but without unnecessary bureaucracy. Ending the mandatory shoe removal also symbolically brings American airports back in line with global standards: most Western countries have already dropped the rule or made it optional.
