BWI security lines are short on Sunday after long waits on Friday, Saturday

ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, Md. – Travelers who were ready to prove their patience at BWI Thurgood Marshall Airport after days of long security checks, found a welcome place on Sunday.

Check-in lines remained short and the process was smooth, despite the closure of the PreCheck line.

I was like, ‘Well, is this the same airport I saw on TV yesterday? “I like BWI because it’s not too busy compared to nearby airports.”

But on Saturday, an unrecognizable sight for the airport when one long security line is wrapped outside the airport, swinging back and forth several deep lines.

TSA staffing shortages have closed screening areas and combined with the start of spring break for many families, it has turned into a travel nightmare.

It’s shown by a large pile of luggage left near Southwest’s check-in counter — “probably” the checked bags of several passengers who missed their flights, according to spokesman Chris Perry. The company only checks baggage on the plane for passengers with checked boarding passes.

Perry said customers can claim their bags at the front desk, or they will be sent on a return flight.

WMAR-2 News (Blair Sabol)

“Even when we planned to come 4 1/2 hours early, people were like: ‘Oh are you sure you don’t want to be there at 12?'” Andrea Taylor said.

Taylor, who often flies out of Dulles Airport, said she and her family were checking for updates all week worried about what their first BWI experience would be like. Saturday was especially eye-opening.

“Especially traveling with young children … it was very taxing on our minds,” Taylor said. How to make them happy but still on time. How to calm them down and keep them quiet for about 4-5 hours on the phone, we don’t know anything.

They couldn’t drop their bags now. But they tell WMAR-2 News that they would prefer to wait until a permanent security line.

On Saturday, BWI was again among the top three airports for TSA, with a call rate of 33.5%.
It has been seen a lot of people who are not there in the last week:

Sunday 3/22: 38.1%
Monday 3/23: 30.4%
Tuesday 3/24: 28.1%
Wednesday 3/25: 29.1%
Thursday 3/26: 37.4%
Friday 3/27: 35.6%
Sunday 3/28: 33.5%

Nationwide, 2,890 TSA employees walked off the job Saturday. It is not a very high level as seen in previous days, but it is still 10.27% of the workforce.

TAKE paychecks on the way

Perhaps some are optimistic, the TSA reports agents should begin being paid on Monday after President Trump signed an executive order late last week.

This, as Passover and Passover are fast approaching.

Although the DHS funding impasse in Congress continues, the House and Senate are going into recess before they can reach an agreement.

“We’re not holding all the money for the Department of Homeland Security,” Sen. Maryland Democrat Chris Van Hollen said on ABC This Week. “We’ve said over and over, over and over, we’ve said over and over that we need to fund TSA, fund FEMA, fund the Coast Guard.”

ICE agents continued to be at BWI on Sunday, after being dispatched the day before. It is not clear how long this will continue.

The Maryland Aviation Administration reported that TSA informed them “ICE’s primary purpose is security enforcement, not immigration enforcement” during their time at the airport.