Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Saturday Morning News

Interview With Mantill Williams

Aired January 19, 2002 - 09:28   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CATHERINE CALLAWAY, CNN ANCHOR: With all the new airport security measures in mind, let's get some new awareness (sic), travel tips for you, and go to our man Mantill Williams. He's public relations director for AAA in Washington.

Thanks for being with us again.

MANTILL WILLIAMS, AMERICAN AUTOMOBILE ASSOCIATION: Good morning, Catherine.

CALLAWAY: Well, Miles is right, it wasn't the big mess that everyone thought it was going to be. Why do you think?

WILLIAMS: No, it wasn't. I think we really need to owe that to the passengers. The passengers were very patient. A lot of people heeded the warnings of the FAA and our warnings saying that you should get there a little bit early, expect delays, and just be patient with the security screeners, because they really are doing this for your benefit.

CALLAWAY: You know what, though, they had a bit of an incentive, Mantill, because some of these airlines were saying, You don't get there 30 minutes early, then you can't board. So they had to get there early, right?

WILLIAMS: You're absolutely right. The travel landscape has changed completely, and that's one of the things that once you get to the airport, if you're not there 30 minutes before that flight takes off, you're absolutely right, they will not let you on that plane. So they did have sort of an extra incentive to make sure that they were cooperating.

CALLAWAY: You know, some of the age-old tips that we've been hearing over the years -- call ahead, bring patience with you when you go to the airport -- all of those stand, of course. But anything else we should keep in mind when we head to the airports now?

WILLIAMS: Yes, absolutely. Before you head out, not only do you want to call ahead, but you want to make sure you're being very smart when you pack your luggage, particularly when you pack your carry-on luggage. You want to avoid putting any type of sharp objects, such as metal scissors, corkscrews, even a fingernail file or a straight razor, and...

CALLAWAY: Because you're going to lose it.

WILLIAMS: You're going to lose it. And if you think you're going to walk on that plane with your golf clubs or a hockey stick or a baseball bat, that's not going to happen...

CALLAWAY: Oh, how life has changed.

WILLIAMS: ... the landscape has completely changed.

CALLAWAY: You know, I also heard you say earlier that you shouldn't put anything in your bag that you wouldn't be embarrassed for someone to see, but...

WILLIAMS: Yes, absolutely. Just keep in mind that if you -- in your carry-on, everything is fair game for them to go through. So if there's something there that you might be embarrassed about or something that's very personal, you might not want to put that in a carry-on bag, because keep in mind, they're doing this for our benefit, and...

CALLAWAY: And there are no secrets any longer in what you're carrying in your bag, right?

WILLIAMS: Absolutely.

CALLAWAY: One thing that I think we should also mention is that it's a whole other game now. If you check your baggage and then you for some reason can't board the plane or don't board the plane, you need to contact the airlines and tell them, right?

WILLIAMS: Absolutely, because as you know, they're using a variety of methods to check the checked baggage for explosive devices. They're using bomb-sniffing dogs, machines, all types of things. So if your bag goes on there, for some strange reason -- a personal emergency, you have to do a conference call, or whatever -- you want to alert the customer service agent as soon as possible so that there's no problem there and you won't have a swarm of security going around you.

CALLAWAY: And you lose your bag for good, too, right?

WILLIAMS: There you -- exactly, yes.

CALLAWAY: Mantill Williams, thanks for being with us again this morning.

WILLIAMS: Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com