Another factor in the US (and often copied by other countries) is the absurd security-theater restrictions on what you can bring with you. If you need/want to b

Another factor in the US (and often copied by other countries) is the absurd security-theater restrictions on what you can bring with you. If you need/want to bring several types of creams, lotions, gels, etc. you're out of luck. Ditto if you need/want to bring any tools with questionable points or edges. Or several other categories of items you can find on placards at every security bottleneck (each one a worse security problem than what they purportedly seek to prevent). I don't absolutely need any of these things, but I don't like being caught flat-footed without some of them when I'm on the road for a week or more each month, so I end up checking bags. > you suddenly have to arrive 60-120 minutes earlier That seems like a bit of an exaggeration. I travel a fair bit. The worst bag-checkin delay I've ever encountered was barely over half an hour. The security lines are routinely longer than that, and everyone carrying huge roll-aways makes those worse. Those, or the lines to re-book when flights are changed, are the real reasons to arrive early.