Security Lines Could Get Much Shorter at Some Airports

A TSA proposal would eliminate screenings at smaller hubs
By Josh Gardner,  Newser Staff
Posted Aug 1, 2018 7:00 PM CDT
TSA Might Eliminate Screening at 150 Small Airports
People wait in line to check in at McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas.   (AP Photo/John Locher)

The TSA is reportedly mulling over a proposal to eliminate screenings at some airports, which would mark a major departure from the pricey, time intensive and often headache-inducing security measures put in place post-911. CNN reported Wednesday that the move would lift the requirement at 150 small and some medium-sized airports that serve aircraft with capacities no larger than 60 passengers. Per documents obtained by CNN, travelers from the affected airports who travel to larger hubs would be subject to screenings upon arrival. The move would also save serious federal cash in the range of $150 million a year, according to the documents, freeing up more money for security measures where experts feel they're more needed.

While anonymous TSA officials told CNN they fear the change would increase security risks, the report said it could cause only a "small (non-zero) undesirable increase in risk related to additional adversary opportunity." In other news with the potential to make the trip through security a little easier, the AP has reported that multiple major airports are testing 3-D imagers that could allow travelers to leave liquids and laptops in their carry-on bags. Per Bloomberg, TSA plans to have the scanners, whose CT technology is akin to what's used in medicine, in more than 145 in airports by October 2019. (More TSA stories.)

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