Carry-on airline bags bugging security as well
When asked what most bothers them about flying, seven in ten passengers complain about people who bring too many carry-on bags through security, according to the US Travel Association.
But that’s not the only reason it’s a headache for passengers and a big concern for airport officials.
CBS News correspondent Mark Strassmann reports that the usual $25 fee to check a bag not only adds to the cost of a flight, it also raises a security concern at airport checkpoints. The fee has led to a surge in carry-on bags from passengers trying to avoid it.
The Transportation Security Administration says passengers carried on 59 million more bags last year than the year before.
“More carry-on bags "obviously take more time in two areas," said John Pistole, head of the TSA. "One is the sheer volume of the bags, the carry-on bags. But then two, most are fairly densely packed because people are trying to get everything in."
The increase in carry-ons also lends to a greater possibility that a security screener will miss something.
But airlines obviously relish the fees they generate.
Without the $3.4 billion generated by checked bag fees, the airlines would be in the red, according to various estimates.
"Fees that come in from services that are offered to customers is actually relatively small but necessary to maintain any level of profitability at all," said Jean Medina, vp with the Air Transport Association.
The TSA estimates screening all the additional carry-ons costs $260 million per year.
By David Wilkening
David
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