Travellers to US warned of three-hour security queues
Holidaymakers travelling through US airports this summer are being advised to arrive early due to long queues at security check points.
The waiting times have become so long that passengers are missing flights, according to the Independent.
Its report said security officials hired by the national Transportation Safety Agency were struggling to keep up with rising numbers of travellers.
One major airport, in Phoenix, Arizona, is threatening to throw the TSA out and replace them with private screeners instead.
Airports that appear to have the worst queues are in New York, Detroit, Atlanta and Chicago.
In the worst cases, queues are up to three hours’ long.
American Airlines claims that in one week in March, long delays at security caused 6,800 of its passengers to miss their flights.
The Independent said that 450 American Airlines’ passengers missed their flights at Chicago O’Hare Airport on Sunday.
Jeh Johnson, the Homeland Security Secretary, has promised to act, including authorizing the TSA to take on an extra 768 screening personnel, more overtime provision for the existing 42,500 staff and more bomb-sniffing dogs in major airports.
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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