Too many travelers are having to wait in extraordinarily long and painfully slow lines at checkpoints, wrote the CEOs of American Airlines, United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Alaska Airlines and others in an open letter to Congress. They added: First, leaders should immediately come together to reach an agreement to fund the Department of Homeland Security. Then they need to act so this problem never happens again.
Last week, I found myself sandwiched between a chatty toddler and a businessman furiously typing emails while waiting in the TSA line at O'Hare. The familiar symphony of beeping metal detectors, rustling bags, and the distant "please remove your shoes" announcements filled the air. But what caught my attention wasn't the chaos around me-it was the subtle eye rolls, suppressed sighs, and barely contained frustration rippling through the line whenever someone over 60 approached the security checkpoint.