Orlando Airport Moves to Ditch TSA Staff

Air security staffers aren't getting a lot of love lately, and Orlando's airport now wants to get rid of as many TSA workers as it can. The Florida airport has applied to replace TSA screeners with private contractors. An airport spokeswoman tells Aol News the action is in response to consumer complaints about TSA staff: The move would give the airport greater oversight of the operations, she said. Security procedures would stay the same if the request is granted and some TSA staff would remain as supervisors.

As complaints about TSA scans and pat-downs surge, Rep. John Mica, the ranking Republican on the House Transportation Committee, is urging other airports to follow Orlando's lead. "As TSA has grown larger, more impersonal, and administratively top-heavy, I believe it is important that airports across the country consider utilizing the opt-out provision provided by law," he wrote in a letter to 150 airports. Mica, AP notes, has received some hefty campaign contributions from companies that might take the TSA's place. It's uncertain if contractors would reassure consumers who already have privacy concerns about the new "nudie" airport security scans. Click here for more on Orlando's plans.
(More John Mica stories.)