U.S. BEEFS UP SECURITY STAFF

The chief of the US Transportation Security Administration says that his agency has quadrupled the number of employees who could bolster screening operations at airports that become too crowded this summer. It’s a message the Canadian travel industry, and travellers, are hoping to hear here soon, despite comments yesterday from Canada’s transport minister that staffing issues are not to blame in this country.

“We expect this to be a busy summer, and we are as ready as we possibly can be,” TSA Administrator David Pekoske said at a news conference near Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. “We’re likely going to exceed in some airports by good measure the 2019 numbers.”

Pekoske said nearly 1,000 employees have volunteered to be sent to other airports if needed. It’s part of the agency’s plan for handling what is projected to be a frenetic vacation-travel season.

He added that TSA – which has 47,500 screeners – tries to predict when wait times in the standard checkpoint lanes will be at least 30 minutes, or when waits for PreCheck travellers will be at least 10 minutes. When that happens, he said, volunteers from less-crowded airports will be sent to help reduce the waits at busy airports.

The TSA has screened, on average, more than 2.1 million travellers per day in April and May. That is about 90% as many people as it screened in the same stretch of 2019.

Airlines are expecting summer crowds to be similar to 2019, when more than 2.5 million people per day streamed through US airport checkpoints.

Airlines have posted ambitious schedules for the summer vacation months, although some have recently trimmed those plans out of fear that they won’t have enough employees to operate every flight. Also, international travel is still far below pre-pandemic levels.

Nevertheless, the TSA has warned travellers that the current travelling environment “may require more patience and planning than was necessary before the pandemic,” adding that checkpoint environments and procedures have changed to enhance screening operations, ensure the safety and well-being of the travelling public, and to minimize the spread of COVID-19.

TSA has also offered a number of tips to help passengers collectively speed up the process. They include: ensure prohibited items aren’t packed; arrive at the airport in plenty of time and check local requirements and conditions; have a valid ID card readily available; follow the liquids rule of 3.4 ounces or less, with the exception of hand sanitizer, which has a temporary 12-ounce limit in carry-on baggage; contact TSA in advance for special circumstances; and enrol in TSA PreCheck (including Nexus in Canada)