Orlando Airport Steps Back From Threat to Kick TSA Out of Airport

Orlando Airport Steps Back From Threat to Kick TSA Out of Airport

Orlanda International Airport management has stepped back from a prior threat to kick the TSA out of their airport in a dispute over long security lines and customer dissatisfaction.  The airport had originally noted that they would kick out TSA agents from the airport and bring in a private contracted security firm to fill in the gap.  The dispute started over long security longs at the busiest airport in Florida.

According to the Orlando Sentinel:

Speaking to the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority board, airport director Phil Brown credited TSA for recent workforce upgrades aimed at easing passenger wait times at Florida’s busiest airport.

Orlando International would have been the nation’s first large airport to make such a move.

The threat to seek private security brought intervention by U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, U.S. Reps. Val Demings and Darren Soto.

A positive to come out of this is that Orlando Airport, in conjunction with the TSA, will be starting a customer service training for all TSA agents that operate at the airport.  As anybody that has ever dealt with the TSA can probably attest to, that is a great thing to put in place.  Hopefully, the training also includes training that Washington, D.C. licenses are valid U.S. licenses, since an Orlando Airport TSA agent wasn’t aware of that.  It’s unclear whether it will make TSA agents more customer service oriented, but hopefully it will do just that.  The people employed with TSA are prone to be incredibly unfriendly, and speaking from personal experience, there’s been times where they are downright nasty for no apparent reason.

We will see how this improves, particularly as the TSA recently started even more in-depth screening for carry-on luggage.  Hopefully, there will be a marked improvement in the customer service of the TSA at Orlando Airport and a decrease in wait times for consumers.