A record 45.7m passengers are expected to fly on domestic airlines from Dec. 20 to Jan. 6. But unlike holiday seasons past, they are unlikely to be standing in nightmarishly long lines. “My hope is this Christmas will be a better, less stressful, more hassle-free airport screening experience than last year,” said Henry Harteveldt, founder of Atmosphere Research Group, a travel industry analysis firm in San Francisco. Why? Better technology is one reason. The TSA has installed more effective equipment, like improved conveyor belts and 3-D scanning machines, which give screeners a better view of the contents of travelers’ carry-on bags. The airlines and airports are testing biometric screening of passengers’ passports or other photo IDs. The airlines are also adding more flights on some of their busiest routes or switching to bigger planes to meet demand during the period. And then, there are the dogs. The TSA is using more dogs trained to detect explosives. The dogs speed the security process because passengers have already been vetted for explosives by the time they reach the scanners. “They’re a very important layer of security,” an agency spokeswoman, Lisa Farbstein, said. Of course, bad weather could throw a wrench into all the plans. But airlines also have an answer for that — apps that they say will allow travellers to reschedule their flights more quickly than standing in line at the ticket counter. The result should be smoother travel.<br/>
general
Airline passengers in Canada could soon be eligible for significant compensation for delayed flights or lost baggage, under proposed regulations unveiled by the government Monday. The draft rules follow a rising number of complaints, including from one flight stuck on the tarmac in Ottawa for nearly six hours, with no air conditioning and the stench of a sick child's vomit in the air. The long wait in sweltering heat on that July 2017 flight led one passenger to dial emergency services for help after being told they could not disembark. "We all know someone who has had a negative flight experience or we have seen stories in the news," Transport Minister Marc Garneau said. "Except in circumstances which are beyond their control, we're going to make sure that airlines treat their passengers with the respect they deserve and live up to their commitments." The rules -- subject to a public consultation -- would apply to flights to, from and within Canada, and provide for up to Can$1,000 in compensation for delays or cancelations, and Can$2,400 for customers bumped from a flight due to overbooking.<br/>
Airbus is ready to pay a special bonus to its lowest-paid workers after French President Emmanuel Macron called on French companies to help tackle weeks of protests about the cost of living, according to a staff memo. The intervention by Europe’s largest aerospace firm - part-owned by French, German and Spanish states - comes after Macron last week urged company leaders including planemaking chief and designated CEO Guillaume Faury to do more to ease the crisis. However, Airbus - which depends primarily on exports of jetliners in competition with US rival Boeing - has also stressed the importance of remaining competitive and warned against focusing solely on “cyclical and pecuniary measures”. “Airbus is ready to contribute and support the government’s action in response to this emergency, while recalling the absolute necessity to maintain the competitiveness of French companies that are exposed, like Airbus, to strong international competition,” said the memo to French staff. A spokeswoman said the size and scope of any bonus payment had yet to be defined and would be discussed in the regular course of dialogue with the company’s unions.<br/>
A new scanner at Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport might someday eliminate the need to unpack those quart-size bags of liquids. The new computed tomography scanner at O’Hare’s Terminal 1 produces three-dimensional images that TSA agents can view from different angles to get a better view of the contents of passengers’ bags. Passengers may not see the new scanner in use until after the holidays — the TSA still needs to test it and train the employees who will operate it. Airports in Phoenix and Boston were the first to test the technology in June 2017. The CT scanners are now in nearly two dozen airports, and the TSA plans to have more than 190 scanners in use by the end of next year, said TSA spokesman Mark Howell. If the new technology lives up to its promise, giving TSA agents a better view of bags being scanned will mean they won’t have to do as many hands-on searches, making security more efficient for passengers. The TSA doesn’t have data yet on whether the new scanners have increased efficiency. The machines seem to reduce the need for hands-on bag checks, Howell said, but as with any new technology, there’s a learning curve for both agents and passengers. O’Hare will be the first airport to combine the CT scanner with a new type of screening lane first introduced at O’Hare in late 2016. The newer lanes let multiple passengers place their bags in bins for screening at the same time and automatically divert bags flagged for extra review without halting those behind them. They also have a second conveyor system that shuttles empty bins back to the front of the line. “It’s what we’re hoping the future of the checkpoints will be,” he said.<br/>