I am scheduled to take a 1 year old on a three hour flight a week from now. Maybe a headache, under normal circumstances, but it’s a real nightmare in the modern airport bedlam. So, I was relieved – very happy – to learn that security hassles are decreasing at most airports. But that doesn’t solve the big, long-term safety and reliability problems in American air travel.
Today, we focus on two questions: Why is US air travel that bad? And what can be done to improve it, besides taking Amtrak?
This story first appeared in Today’s Daily, Explained
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US airlines are gradually increasing passengers to a bad standard of flying: small seats, mediocre snacks, fees for everything you can think of. But even with the low standards of today’s air travel, the airline industry seems to be there in particular crisis now, beset by staff shortages, security delays, and a series of horrific incidents that have some flag bearers questioning whether flying is safe at all.
These issues worsened during the partial government shutdown, which forced nearly 50,000 TSA agents to work without pay. Unscheduled calls and resignations delayed security checks across the country, drawing visitors into hours-long lines.
On Monday, TSA agents received their first paycheck in more than a month, easing the problem at many airports. But even if things go back to normal, normal is still…very bad.
Can we do airport security?
One surprising option for fixing the ship — or, well, the plane — comes courtesy of the libertarian minds at the Heritage Foundation (and many other think tanks). They suggested that the United States allow airports to hire private security contractors to do most of the TSA’s work.
These private contractors would check IDs, check baggage, conduct pat-downs and — especially, in our current political climate — continue to operate through a government shutdown. The model is already in place at about 20 US airports, including Kansas City and San Francisco.
Fixing a “complete” system will cost a lot of money
Proponents argue that privatization would cut costs and make the TSA more efficient. But even if that were true, it wouldn’t address the many other issues causing delays and security scares at US airports. According to the Federal Aviation Administration, 80 percent of the country’s air traffic control infrastructure is “obsolete” or “no longer able to continue.”
That includes 612 radar systems that date back to the 1980s and other equipment so old that the FAA has to use eBay for replacement parts. Equipment failure can cause flight delays and cancellations, not to mention potential accidents. Last summer, Congress approved more than $12 billion to begin renovating the facility, starting with things like replacing old-school copper lines. But the FAA says it will need to another one $20 billion to completely overhaul the air traffic system.
Another shortage of staff at the airport
Meanwhile, the FAA is also short 3,000 air traffic controllers, not improving airport safety or efficiency. Only two pilots were on duty at New York’s LaGuardia Airport when an Air Canada Express passenger plane collided with a fire truck nine days ago.
The Trump administration has introduced many ways to operate air traffic control towers and other facilities, but it has also exacerbated the problem by, for example, eliminating FAA support staff during DOGE cost cuts. The last government shutdown, which ended in November, also prompted the resignation of hundreds of air traffic controllers and trainees.
In the absence of sustainable management solutions, American travelers are left to do the most American thing: fend for themselves. Many airlines still encourage travelers to arrive early for their flights, and some airlines travel by train.
Unfortunately, America’s passenger rail system is also a broken train. And don’t even think about driving – have you seen the gas prices?
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