The coordinated terrorist attacks on New York’s World Trade Center and the Pentagon in Washington shocked the country and may change the perception of air travel as we have come to know it. Certainly the ramifications of the attacks will be felt for a long time to come even though it is impossible to say at this time what those ramifications will be. Immediately, security procedures at U.S. airports and on all airlines will be tightened significantly, including the banning of curbside check-in, thorough searches of carry-on luggage, and the prohibition of knives and sharp instruments of any sort on airplanes. Travelers should expect delays and long check-in lines. Around the world, some 25 percent of U.S. embassies and consulates closed or suspended operations following the attacks pending security checks, including the embassies in Bangkok, Canberra, Jakarta, New Delhi and Tokyo. In Australia, consulates in Sydney and Melbourne were closed. In France, Paris City Hall set up a hotline to answer questions from American visitors who could not get information regarding flights and hotel rooms from the embassy. If planning international travel in the coming weeks, contact the U.S. embassy by phone to confirm what consular services are available.
