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Bellingham, Sea-Tac airports elude nationwide delays amid TSA troubles

Bellingham, Sea-Tac airports elude nationwide delays amid TSA troubles

Photo: Saga Communications/Dave Walker


BELLINGHAM, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – Our local airports are avoiding the delays seen across the country amid the ongoing partial government shutdown.

Hundreds of TSA workers have quit after the shutdown left them without pay, which has caused long security lines at many U.S. airports.

But travelers at two of our closest airports in Bellingham and Seattle aren’t having that problem.

Port of Bellingham spokesperson Mike Hogan tells My Bellingham Now that Bellingham International Airport hasn’t seen any increase in wait times or any staffing problems amid the shutdown.

And Sea-Tac said in a statement that wait times have also stayed the same at 10-15 minutes to get through security checkpoints.

The Seattle Times reports that the airport has been using staff from a private security firm to take over posts from lost TSA workers that don’t require specialized training.

Federal lawmakers are still working on a plan to fund Homeland Security, which oversees the TSA.

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