Henry Kissinger received pat-down before flight to Toronto

The Associated Press

Posted: May 16, 2012 7:42 AM ET

Last Updated: May 16, 2012 8:55 AM ET

Former U.S secretary of state Henry Kissinger was stopped for a pat-down in New York on his way to Toronto. The elder statesman said such an occurrence is "not unusual." (Mary Altaffer/Associated Press)

When former U.S. secretary of state Henry Kissinger flies, he gets patted down by security agents — just about every time.

The 88-year-old Nobel Peace Prize winner was stopped again a few days ago as he passed security at New York's LaGuardia Airport on his way to Toronto.

But the elder statesman released a statement Tuesday, saying it's "not unusual" for him to be patted down during airport security screening. He said he wears a brace on his foot and cannot remove his shoes.

Kissinger praised agents of the U.S. Transportation Security Administration for both their "professionalism" and "courtesy" while performing what he called "an important job."

And the TSA released a statement saying there was "no indication of anything out of the ordinary" with Kissinger's checkpoint experience last Friday.

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