TSA preparing for record-breaking summer travel season

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Next week kicks off what is expected to be a record-breaking travel season for airports across the country, and on Thursday, TSA leaders will discuss how they're preparing to handle hundreds of millions of passengers.

A record 243 million passengers and crew are expected to pass through security checkpoints between Memorial Day and Labor Day.

On Thursday, the TSA will talk to congressional leaders about their plans to keep travelers safe.

The agency will ask passengers to remove more items from their bags to speed up the carry-on screening process. Agents will also use 3-D scanners at some major checkpoints.

Part of President Donald Trump's budget proposal would include an increase in airline ticket prices to help pay for those scanners.

In the past, the TSA has used bomb-sniffing dogs to speed up wait times. Passengers who were sniffed by the dogs were allowed to travel through pre-check, without undergoing background checks.

Congressional leaders criticized that practice, calling it unsafe. There is no word on if it will be implemented during the summer travel season.

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