AirPods thru airport security

I tried walking thru the x-ray machine while wearing my AirPods. They did not trigger an alarm but the TSA agent said they must go thru the scanner with my carry-on bags since they look similar to a detonator

That makes sense. You have to remove anything with metal when you go through the metal detector except eyeglasses and maybe other medical things..

I recently went through security with 3 cellphones and 2 iPads. The iPads I had to lay flat in their own tray, the phones along with a miscellany of chargers and backup batteries could all go through in a carry-on bag.

In the U.S., you can leave your cell phone in your bag as well.

https://www.tsa.gov/travel/travel-tips/travel-checklist

So, I don't imagine something as small as AirPods would cause a problem.

I've honestly never had trouble with tablets or a kindle, either, though that page says to remove them. The only thing that ever got my bag searched was a couple of rechargable battery packs. But, once they saw them, it was fine.

I don't have any airpods but I have never put my tech items loose in a tray. Before I go into security I put them in a pocket in my carry-on and put that on the big tray that goes through the scanner.

I tried walking thru the x-ray machine while wearing my AirPods. They did not trigger an alarm but the TSA agent said they must go thru the scanner with my carry-on bags since they look similar to a detonator