BATON ROUGE - Confusion arose among travelers at the airport today as the long-anticipated REAL ID deadline for airline travel arrived. Some travelers were caught off guard, unsure if they could board their flights.

The REAL ID deadline is May 7th, which caused some confusion and worry for travelers at the Baton Rouge Airport.

"They just say you need the REAL ID and then you start freaking out that you're not able to fly out," Ashley Pernicone, who was flying to New York said. “I came down here with my dad and he drove, but I was like 'I don't even know if I'm going to be able to get back' so he was waiting for me in case I wasn't able to get on, but I started freaking out because I didn't know if they would let me on or not."

If you don't have a REAL ID or another accepted form of identification -- such as a passport -- you could face delays at airport security.

Pernicone said she was able to get through with her state-issued ''enhanced ID."

"I don't know how long they're going to allow that, but it said to come here 3 hours early because they were going to have additional security, so I came here 3 hours early, so it's fine," Pernicone said. 

The REAL ID is a boost in security. It requires a birth certificate or passport, social security number, and two proofs of address. Your REAL ID must show a yellow star in the corner to enter federal buildings and planes. 

Brenda Burke is from Wyoming, she said she didn't run into any problems because her state required them early. 

"When it was available for real ID, we got it right away, and most of the western states required real ID earlier than this deadline coming up, so we had absolutely no issues," Burke said. 

Just because today is the deadline does not mean you can't still get your REAL ID if you haven't yet, but if you plan on taking a trip in the future, it's best to get that done as soon as you can.