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Washington / Bloomberg
American Airlines Group Inc. is stepping up efforts to reduce delays at U.S. airport security checkpoints after bottlenecks caused passengers to wait for hours and miss some flights this week.
The carrier will spend $4 million to hire more contractors to assist Transportation Security Administration personnel with non-screening functions, Chief Operating Officer Robert Isom said in a letter to employees Wednesday. That’s in addition to $17 million that American already spends to help reduce wait times, he said. The airline will also promote TSA’s pre-check program and seek ways to fund additional support for canine teams.
Security delays have caused huge lines at some of the busiest U.S. airports, forcing passengers to miss flights and sparking a firestorm of criticism on social media. Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport told fliers to arrive three hours before their departure times this week.
“Two words: TSA lines,’’ Isom said in the letter. “Right now those words evoke frustration from all of us, as well as our customers who continue to miss flights due to lines that are literally out the door.’’