TSA Staffing Shortage Causes Chaos in Airport Security Lines. How to Reduce Waiting
This past weekend, Transportation Security Administration workers missed their first full paycheck due to the partial government shutdown. No wonder most of those security officers have quit or stopped showing up for duty, resulting in a staff shortage at the airport.
The loss of TSA officers and a flurry of severe weather in the Midwest and East Coast are wreaking havoc at airports across the US. Some travelers at Atlanta’s Hartfield-Jackson airport on Tuesday waited more than two hours at security before being allowed to go to their gates, and TSA Acting Deputy Administrator Adam Stahl said the government may need to shut down some flights entirely.
Don’t be surprised when you arrive at the airport and see a security line entering the parking lot. It’s easy to check the security queues before you go to the airport, so you know how long it will take you to get to your gate.
If you have spring break or another scheduled flight coming up soon, learn how to check security line wait times so you can better plan your trip to the airport.
Check out the official TSA app
The TSA maintains an app for mobile devices called MyTSA (iOS and Android) that calculates security line wait times at airports around the US. The app is basic and now includes a warning that “this website is no longer maintained” due to federal funding freezes, but it does include a lot of official TSA information about air travel.
To check wait times for specific US airports, tap the My Flights tab at the bottom of the app, then tap “Search Airports.” You can scroll through the alphabetical list of airports or type the airport name or code in the search bar at the top.
The TSA app will give you a 15-minute time slot for security lines.
Tap to the airport of your choice, and you’ll see the current estimated security wait time at the top of the screen.
When I checked some of the major airports on Tuesday afternoon — Los Angeles (LAX), Chicago O’Hare (ORD), Hartsfield-Jackson in Atlanta (ATL), JFK in New York (JFK) and Ronald Reagan in DC (DCA) — most had estimated low wait times of 0 to 15 or 15 to 30 minutes (it was only 30 minutes for JF4).
Those estimates are a far cry from the two to four hours airports advise travelers to allow, but the times on the MyTSA app were more consistent with times listed on airport websites (see below). The exception was Hartsfield-Jackson in Atlanta, which showed an average of 0-15 minutes on the MyTSA app, but slightly longer times on the airport’s website.
The MyTSA app also includes historical estimates of airport security line wait times by time of day.
Check your airport’s website
When I checked the TSA app, it did not list specific terminals at any airports. Only put it in the “all slots” time range list.
If you’re looking for that kind of detailed information, your best bet is to use official airport websites — most of the big ones now offer estimated wait times. Some airports put those limited times upfront and focused on their websites; some need more testing.
Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson airport website shows more detailed security line information than the TSA app.
Most airport websites will release times for specific terminals. In some of the major airlines, there are often differences between the terminals.
Here are the web pages for estimated waiting lines for some of the busiest airlines in the US:
I couldn’t find security line wait times on the websites of the two busiest airports — O’Hare in Chicago and Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) in Las Vegas. For those, you’ll need to use the TSA app.
Save your place in the security line
Many airports now allow travelers to spend some time in the security line. At Seattle’s SeaTac Airport, you book a Spot Saver and go to a specially marked security checkpoint listed on your reservation. An employee scans the barcode emailed to you, and you are brought forward. At SeaTac, you can be 15 minutes before or after your Spot Saver reservation, as airport time is difficult to estimate.
Here is a list of some of those booking sites. You can search for your airport name and “reserve security line” or something similar to see if your airport also has the program.
