Needles on Airplanes, I'm scared to do it

[dink]

I'm taking a lovely 4+ hour flight to see my family over Memorial weekend. I been reading threads on the TSA security, and went to my airline (Southwest) and checked their rules, and that lead to the TSA site where it says it's okay to take them on, etc.

But part of me is afraid to do it, because I'm fearful they are going to be taken away. :pray: I'm wanting to take my Options but I'm fearful because they are so sharp they'll be taken away. I only have one small pair of plastic, and 3 wooden pairs, and the rest are metal.

I read someone said that putting the rubber end caps on may seem as a way of making them look less like a weapon. And then of course the self addressed stamped envelope. I'm just afraid because it's my first time, and well, I won't have any baggage to check should they get taken away!

[jeanius80]

i used to work for tsa (until i had my dd, now i stay home:mrgreen:) i know they are okay. i would reccomend pulling them out of your carry on bag, lay them flat for the xray. this will make them easy to see. they may still want to open it up and physically look at them though. i would probably have at least one of your options circ put together and in use so they can see that they really are knitting needles. trust me, they are ok.

[zip]

First, exhibit no fear. ;) It isn't as though you're trying to hide something. Don't point them out to security. Don't ask, "is it ok if I bring these with me?" You've done your homework. If you are denied (which can happen at any airport at any time,) there's a Checkpoint Mailers (http://www.checkpointmailers.com/index.html) kiosk at your airport.

[Knitting_Guy]

I wouldn't make a big deal about it. Worst case, they tell you to mail them home.

[dj]

It's not a problem. I flew in February - with a project - and no one said anything. I took something that wouldn't require scissors or anything other than the circular needles being used - the rest of my "stuff" was checked!

[Sanibelle]

I get a magazine called Yarn Market News - it is really for people that own a LYS so I do not know how I got the subscription - but I just got a new issue on Friday and there was an article in there about bringing needles on a plane. I will check tonight when I get home but it seems that there was a new ruling last month that said metal needles and circulars over 32 inches were not allowed. I will post the quote when I get home.

Lynn

[misha rf]

They're still allowed according to the TSA's website:

http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/prohibited/permitted-prohibited-items.shtm

[Markette]

I felt the same way about taking needles on a plane a few weeks ago, but I finally just sucked it up and tried it. I had a shawl going on Inox grey circulars, and I put it in a plastic zip bag and put that in my work bag and didn't say a word to security about it, and they didn't say a word to me about it. In fact, when flying home, they checked inside my purse, but not the bag with the knitting. And then I got to the gate and there was a woman sitting there with long straights. I'm pretty convinced that there's no reason to worry, now.

[KathyinCali]

[quote=Sanibelle;859393]I get a magazine called Yarn Market News - it is really for people that own a LYS so I do not know how I got the subscription - but I just got a new issue on Friday and there was an article in there about bringing needles on a plane. I will check tonight when I get home but it seems that there was a new ruling last month that said metal needles and circulars over 32 inches were not allowed. I will post the quote when I get home.


I would really appreciate knowing if this is a new rule. I travel all the time with metals and long circulars and haven't yet had a problem but there's always a first time.

[Sanibelle]

I checked the TSA website - here is the quote from their web page:

Transporting Knitting Needles & Needlepoint

Knitting needles are permitted in your carry-on baggage or checked baggage. However, there is a possibility that the needles can be perceived as a possible weapon by one of our Security Officers. Our Security Officers have the authority to determine if an item could be used as a weapon and may not allow said item to pass through security. We recommend the following when bring knitting needles on an airplane:

Circular knitting needles are recommended to be less than 31 inches in total length
We recommend that the needles be made of bamboo or plastic (Not Metal)
Scissors must have blunt points
In case a Security Officer does not allow your knitting tools through security it is recommended that you carry a self addressed envelope so that you can mail your tools back to yourself as opposed to surrendering them at the security check point.
As a precautionary measure we recommend that you carry a crochet hook with yarn to save the work you have already done in case your knitting tools are surrendered at the checkpointMost of the items needed to pursue a Needlepoint project are permitted in your carry-on baggage or checked baggage with the exception of circular thread cutters or any cutter with a blade contained inside. These items cannot be taken through a security checkpoint. They must go in your checked baggage.

Lynn

[newknitteraswell]

i Just traveled on Southwest and took my blanket I am working on in my carryon and had no problems going through security and knitting on the plane.

Enjoy your flight.

[Jess_knit]

I traveled to Denver and Philadelphia in March, and Denver again in April (from Pittsburgh) and not once, going or coming, did anyone mention my needles. I brought bamboo DPNs the first time, but I've also traveled with metal KP DPNs the second two times. I also brought blunt scissors and a metal tapestry needle. I wasn't stopped for any of that. (I was, however, searched for having a mostly empty bottle of water.)

I didn't mention anything to the security agents.

[dink]

I'm going to go for it. Even if I were to put the end caps on my project currently on the needles, I could take the actual KP needles off, just in case, so I'm not having to mail back my entire project. Worth a shot. I'm pretty much almost done with my booga bag, but I was hoping to make the i-cord to kill some time. (I don't have any other projects yet to start) So I guess it's worth a shot. Either that or I could get some wooden DPNs.

Thanks for all the help everyone! I'm sure though on the flight there I'll be wanting to sleep (nothing like getting up at 4:00 a.m. :doh:)!

And besides, like most of you had said, if I just act cool about it, it should be fine. I'm typically the person that the second I get into the screening line, I'm taking my shoes & belt off, and my laptop (if I take it) out of the bag. Even if the line is obnoxiously long, I'm still ready the second I get in the line. I hate to hold people up.

[cindyln]

I was on 4 flights this past week and I had DPNs and blunt pointed sissors with me. Nothing was said,no problems

[dink]

And just to clear things up, you'd just leave it in the carry-on bag? I won't be checking my luggage because I'll only be gone a weekend. So, I'll have my suit case & then purse as my 2 items to carry-on.

I know I've got to do the plastic bag for my eye drops and liquid make-up, but you guys didn't do anything special for the needles right? Just left them in your carry-on wherever you put them?

[dink]

Could anyone recommend a nice easy and simple project (newbie here....) for an airplane ride??

[dj]

I had my project in a gallon zip-lock bag in my carry-on. Easy to see in case of inspection, and prevented damage from the other things in my bag.:rollseyes:

[Knitting_Guy]

Could anyone recommend a nice easy and simple project (newbie here....) for an airplane ride??


Start a sock. The top is easy as it's just 2x2 ribbing. That will keep you busy on the flight and you can tackle the heel later. Socks are small so they don't take up much room and aren't a hassle to handle in a small space.

[Lady Violet]

i flew to texas the last week of april. i took one pair of straight bamboos, a pair of scissors that you use to cut baby fingernails, and a couple balls of kitchen cotton. whenever i was in the airport i just left them in my carry-on bag until i got on the plane. i left them in my bag when i went through security, and i didn't have any problems.
for a simple project to work on on a plane i would suggest a washcloth. i started one on the way there and finished it on the way back. once you know what you're doing, you don't really have to think about it. you can even knit while you're looking out the window. this (http://www.jimsyldesign.com/~dishbout/kpatterns/grfavorite.html) is the one i worked on. i basically just wanted to be productive on my flight. usually i just look at a few pages in a magazine and then stare out the window or at the back of the seat in front of me. the dishcloth gave my hands something to do.

[dink]

i basically just wanted to be productive on my flight. usually i just look at a few pages in a magazine and then stare out the window or at the back of the seat in front of me. the dishcloth gave my hands something to do.

That's what I do for about 4 1/2 hours on top of the 1-2 hours sitting people watching/sitting we all get to do while waiting to board. I swaer, nothing can be more boring than flying and waiting to fly, especially alone. Nothing can be worse. Especially if you have to leave and use the rest room, trust your bag to the strangers around you to hold your place in line (on Southwest at least). Man the thrills!

I actually just made that discloth a few weeks ago! :)

[Vendie]

I love socks for on-the-plane projects. Actually, socks are my go-to project for any kind of traveling.

[dink]

I think once I know how to knit socks, I'd do the same. I think though I'd need online assistance, or someone with me along the way. So as fun as that would be, I'd be a little afraid! :shock:

I could start another bag or something...simple, mindless garter stitches...ahhh yes. :heart::lol:

[zkimom]

I don't care what the TSA regs say. I wouldn't even attempt to take my knitting on the plane. I know some of you have been able to but the key point in the TSA regs is that it is up to the person who is doing the screening and if they say your needles look dangerous, you don't take them on the plane.

You could argue that it's in the TSA regs all you want but if the person doing the screening thinks you will try to strangle a flight attendant with your Denises cause they won't bring you more champagne or that you will be in the bathroom frantically trying to sharpen your dpns so you can take down the pilot, then there isn't anything you can do to make them think otherwise.

After my last flying experience, trying to convince a flight attendant that my husband's bag was regulation size and that he's taken it all over the world with no problem, she just wouldn't back down and was ready to kick us off the plane to prove her point. It took the pilot's intervention to let my husband put his bag in the overhead and show the Wicked Witch of Air France that it fit just fine.

I just don't think it's worth it -- I think it was Ingrid who mentioned that even though they tell you to bring an envelope along so you can mail your knitting back to your home address, there is no place to do so.

That's just my 02.

Best,
Susan

And by the way, I'm thinking of changing my screen name to "Running with Needles."

[Debbie]

I pack my Options and work on an easy project using bamboo circs or straights during the flight.

[DreamWeaver]

Hmm... this is an interesting topic. I've always brought my knitting on the airplane and I've never had any trouble. Then again, as zikmom said, it really depends on the person screening your bag :thinking: I think you should go with it, but be sure not to act really nervous or shifty. That would make them suspicious.

[Julie]

I've never been questioned about my needles on any flight I've taken over the past few years...but I do always pack a self-addressed padded envelope in my carry-on bag, just in case. :D

[madametj]

Could anyone recommend a nice easy and simple project (newbie here....) for an airplane ride??

hmm, lets see, headband, baby hat, iPod cozy, dishcloth, wristband, there's lots u could do

[raederle]

Because the Yarn Harlot's blog post on being asked to put away her knitting on a plane during her book tour freaked me out, I got two pencils, wrapped hair elastics on the ends of each, and found one skein of a fingering weight, variegated mohair in shades of gray to knit with (so the pencil graphite wouldn't mess with the yarn). I brought it on the plane in my purse as "emergency knitting" in case I had a moment to knit when my 18 month old lapsit child was sleeping. While I didn't actually get to knit on the planes, I did knit in the waiting areas.
#2 pencils are a little bigger than 10.5 I think. So, using the mohair is giving me a lace effect, and I'm just doing a garter stitch scarf with it. (But I think I cast on too many stitches -30- so I may untangle the yarn back and start over with fewer and an actual lace pattern for a skinny scarf, ie Branching Out or the Last Minute Knitted Gifts lace scarf.)
I got a new digital camera and haven't uploaded the software yet, or I would post a picture.
My reasoning? They can ask you to put away your needles due to turbulence, or somebody can powertrip and see them as a security risk, but I'd really like to see them ask everyone on the plane to put away their pens and pencils. Pencils should absolutely make it through security, no problem. And mine were wicked sharp.
If they confiscated them, all that would happen is I would lose a few pencils, and look daggers at them while I finger knit with the yarn.
One solution from someone who suffers from TSA paranoia (Remember, if they are really out to get you, you aren't paranoid.)

[brownishcoat]

My friend Melissa (lissalue) is flying to visit me this weekend. I mailed her a set of Boye interchangeable tips in size 7, 3 different cord lengths and the end caps (to make the cord into a stitch holder). I told her to take the tips off while boarding. If the needle tips get confiscated, her knitting stays intact and I'm only out the $2.99 I paid for those needle tips.

But she's flying within the US, so I don't think it's going to be a problem. :shrug:

[Doublereeder2]

I fly about every other month and have had no problems in the US. I usually fly with bamboo or Pony Pearl dpns though I have gone with Addi circs in my socks before with no issues.

My favorite travel project is socks. They are the perfectly portable size and easily fit in my oboe bag.

[lissalue]

My friend Melissa (lissalue) is flying to visit me this weekend. I mailed her a set of Boye interchangeable tips in size 7, 3 different cord lengths and the end caps (to make the cord into a stitch holder). I told her to take the tips off while boarding. If the needle tips get confiscated, her knitting stays intact and I'm only out the $2.99 I paid for those needle tips.

But she's flying within the US, so I don't think it's going to be a problem