No body-scanning machines will be installed at Alaska's airport security gates this year, according to federal officials.

On the other hand, many Alaska travelers can expect to get frisked by airport security agents over the holiday season -- especially if they forget to remove items that can trigger metal detectors, or, if they have implants or external medical devices that trigger the detectors.

The federal Transportation Security Administration recently began installing the body-scanning machines in select airports throughout the country and, everywhere, instituting "enhanced pat downs."

Whether or not an airport has the machines, travelers who trigger the metal detectors may need to undergo a pat-down.

Both the body scanners, which produce nude images, and the pat-downs, which include touching adult private areas, have caused controversy and threats of protests in the Lower 48.

A national "Opt Out Day" scheduled Tuesday by protesters could cause flight delays, some TSA officials have warned.

Anchorage International Airport manager John Parrott said he hopes that all the "brouhaha and controversy" will end before the machines arrive in Alaska.

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