This is a great point -- I've wondered about this for years. I can remember flying back in the 1980s (I was a teen), before security got stupid and when friend

This is a great point -- I've wondered about this for years. I can remember flying back in the 1980s (I was a teen), before security got stupid and when friends and relatives could meet you or drop you off directly at the gate. The whole experience of flying back then was so much better. You used to be able to drop a 5-year-old off at the gate when the plan was boarding, and then have their grandparents meet them at the other gate, sort of like a long elevator ride with friend and family at each door.