PHOTO BY JONATHAN MARCHANT VIA UNSPLASH.COM
Orlando International Airport quietly launched a new security checkpoint support program on April 1, adding roughly 50 workers to help move passengers through screening faster, right as TSA lines hit historic lengths at airports around the country.
The Greater Orlando Aviation Authority approved a five-year, $25.1 million contract with Orlando-based Southeast Airport Services Inc. on March 18. The workers, called divesting agents, coach passengers on what to remove from bags before X-ray screening and keep plastic trays circulating. GOAA says the move will allow them to open one to two extra lanes at both the West and East checkpoints, with a goal of screening 80% of passengers within 30 minutes.
Critically, these workers are paid through GOAA’s own budget, not federal funds, so the ongoing DHS funding standoff doesn’t affect them. TSA officers nationwide went 47 days without pay before receiving back pay on March 30. MCO said its local TSA agents largely continued showing up during the crisis, and the airport didn’t see the dramatic callout rates (some topping 40%) that hit other major hubs.
A smaller version of the program has been running since June 2025, focused primarily on recirculating those x-ray bins you throw your shoes and laptops into. The new contract expands it to full checkpoint support.
