What it's like traveling on 1st day of REAL ID deadline at Oakland airport
What it's like on 1st day of traveling with REAL ID requirement
KTVU takes you to Oakland's airport on what it's like on 1st day of traveling with REAL ID requirement.
OAKLAND, Calif. - As of Wednesday, everyone flying in the United States is supposed to have a REAL ID to board a domestic flight.
Most travelers at Oakland International Airport said they're prepared with the proper documentation, but a few have been caught off guard by the requirement.
Jordon Bottorff of Sacramento was one of those few.
He only brought his regular, California driver's license, which, alone, was not supposed to be enough to fly.
"I just found this out about 30 seconds ago," he said, a little flustered. "It definitely caught me off guard. Now, I have to make some phone calls to get my passport."
The deadline to get a REAL ID has been looming for decades; the federal government first started planning for it after the 911 terror attacks in 2001. The REAL ID is supposed to be a higher-security form of identification that prevent fraud and other problems.
The rule was going to be that if you wanted to fly, you would need a REAL ID, or a passport.
But in a last-minute change, Homeland Security chief Kristi Noem told Congress on Tuesday that passengers would still be allowed to fly domestically without it, even though they might need to undergo extra scrutiny and get checked by TSA in another security line. Some said that could take an extra 30 to 40 minutes.
The TSA said the agency estimated about 81 percent of travelers already have a REAL ID>
Other passengers were prepared.
"I knew about it for a long, long time," Jageir Dhaliwal of Oakland said. "I have a passport. I just worry about people who don't have passports and are stuck today."
Relonda McGee of Oakland also had her documentation.
"We were very prepared," she said. "I followed all the prompts to get it done."
Her husband, Brian McGhee, piped up: "Hey, whatever she told me to do, I did it."