A Day in the Life of a TSA Cares Passenger Support Specialist

This free program helps travelers with disabilities and medical conditions navigate security screening

a TSA agent standing at an airport security checkpoint

TSA Cares provides free assistance to travelers with disabilities, medical conditions and other special circumstances. Follow along with TSA Officer Ramneet “Remy” Kang, who leads a dedicated team of TSA Cares Passenger Support Specialists at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.

Jill Schildhouse

Jill Schlesinger

AARP

Published May 13, 2025

As someone who takes more than 50 flights a year, I’m quite familiar with Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers. These uniformed officers do their best to keep everyone safe, but their presence often adds stress and delays to a traveler’s day.

Imagine my surprise when I learned about the TSA Cares program, which provides free assistance to travelers with disabilities, medical conditions and other special circumstances, such as expedited screening for passengers 75 and older, to ensure a smooth security screening process. TSA Cares is available at all airports, though the level of support at each airport varies. I recommended it to my brother’s girlfriend, who was traveling on crutches after knee surgery, and she raved about the friendly and convenient service that made what could have been a daunting travel day a breeze.

According to AARP’s Destination Aging: Travel Challenges Among 50-Plus Adults survey, travelers 50-plus said that getting into the airport (33 percent), through security (33 percent) and to the gate (32 percent) were the most difficult aspects of travel.

A spate of recent incidents has some travelers questioning the safety of air travel. In January, a deadly mid-air collision between a plane and a helicopter killed 67 people. In the last couple of weeks, air traffic controllers directing planes into the airport in Newark, New Jersey, struggled with radar outages. In addition, there have been flight delays and cancellations because of a shortage of air traffic controllers there.

Was there really a different side of TSA? I was determined to see for myself.

On March 12, 2025, I shadowed a dedicated team of Passenger Support Specialists, led by supervisor Ramneet “Remy” Kang, at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport to witness how the service works. I met a team of sensitive, caring and soft-spoken employees who serve to de-escalate the chaos and stress of security and usher passengers in need seamlessly to their gates. I was blown away.

11:02 a.m.

Kang receives a call from passenger Andrew Roscoe, 55, who says he is nearing the terminal and will soon be ready for assistance. Roscoe, from the Minneapolis area, filled out a TSA Cares form because he was recently hospitalized and is traveling with a large amount of liquid antibiotics. He was anxious about traveling with medical supplies. He and Kang spoke on the phone several times in the week leading up to his flight to discuss his needs and concerns, and again the day of to ensure he felt confident with what to expect and when and where to meet.

“We kind of create that safe place for them,” Kang explains, adding that her team helps with many other situations: “If they’re going to need a wheelchair … [or] if they need help checking a bag … [we can help with] basically everything you could possibly need, from getting from your car to the gate.”

11:24 a.m.

We meet Roscoe, his wife and their two college-age children at the security checkpoint. After going through the standard round of canine security used in this terminal, Kang opens a private lane for their screening. Their bags go onto the conveyor belt, and each family member goes through the metal detector like any other passenger. Roscoe’s medical supplies are inspected, and the screening is complete.

When we reach Roscoe’s gate, it’s only 11:37 a.m. — a mere 13 minutes later. “If I didn’t pre-handle this, it could have created a pinch point coming in,” Roscoe says. “I was concerned about how efficient it was going to be, and it was very efficient. [This went] above my expectations. Everybody was super friendly … and very kind. … It was nice to have them here to help me.”

11:43 a.m.

Kang and I take the PHX Sky Train between terminals. She approaches a couple of kids and pulls a sheet of “Junior TSA Officer” badge stickers out of her pocket. The kids’ faces light up as they proudly affix their new badges to their shirts. The nonthreatening and fun interaction is a smart way to introduce the concept of TSA officers to children.

Kang explains that on slower days with fewer TSA Cares passengers (they recently had 24 on a busy Saturday!), her team will walk around the airport — especially near the check-in counters where travelers get boarding passes and drop off their luggage — to see whether anyone needs their assistance. They are essentially walking billboards for the specialized service, helping to spread awareness and make a positive difference in people’s travel days.

“We’ve had so many passengers literally go into tears because they are so happy with our team and how much we comfort them and really show them that we care,” says Kang. She’s seen it all: older adult travelers with dementia who are unable to navigate the airport alone; passengers flying to a funeral and grieving a loss so heavily that they need moral support more than anything else; people who have autism or are afraid to fly; and sick children taking their Make-A-Wish trip with their families. All those passengers, and more, can use TSA Cares free of charge.

2:14 p.m.

Kang and her team make contact with another family for their scheduled appointment. It’s a couple and their two adult sons, both of whom have developmental disabilities and are unable to travel alone. It becomes immediately apparent that I won’t be able to interview this family, as the sons are growing agitated by the chaos in the airport and their parents have their hands full managing them. One son swings his arms, trying to keep other passengers and TSA agents away. They are already in a private lane, and the agents are working together to defuse the situation.

The family makes it through the screening and gathers their belongings. I follow along as multiple agents escort them to their gate. We all wait patiently for about 10 minutes as the whole family coordinates a bathroom break along the way. The situation felt tense to me, but the agents aren’t fazed. And it was handled so stealthily.

a room with toys, chairs and airplane-related items

Compassion Corner, a sensory room at Sky Harbor International Airport, provides a break from sensory overload. It is equipped with tables and chairs, puzzles and twinkle lights.

Jill Schildhouse

2:36 p.m.

At this point I realize just how impressive this team is. Phoenix Sky Harbor has one of the country’s most comprehensive TSA Cares programs. Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) and Portland (Oregon) International Airport (PDX) are the only other airports with similarly comprehensive programs. Phoenix rolled out an unusually robust training program in November. While some airports offer only two hours of computer training, the Phoenix team gets a full day of hands-on training with experts in dementia, Parkinson’s disease, autism and anger issues.

Kang says the TSA Cares officers even sit through scenarios where they wear glasses that completely change their vision, and headphones that amplify the airport noise and cause them to experience sensory overload.

It “helped our team put into perspective just how hard it is for these people,” Kang says. “We’ve experienced what they’re going through, and ours is just a one-minute training. Imagine being in that type of situation your whole life; imagine how on edge you are. And then you go into an environment where people are just shouting all these commands at you. Imagine how overstimulating that can be.”

To help passengers with sensory issues, Kang and her team carry items like Rubik’s Cubes, squishy toys, coloring books and Slinkys to distract them from the security screening process. They even loan out noise-blocking headphones that are permitted to pass through the metal detectors.

Further, there is a sensory room at the airport called the Compassion Corner which provides respite from sensory overload. The room is equipped with tables and chairs, puzzles and twinkle lights. Anyone can visit, and TSA Cares officers sometimes direct their passengers to this room, where they can hang out in peace until it’s time to go to their gate.

Many passenger cases resonate with Kang, who has a younger brother with a brain tumor who participates in the Make-A-Wish Foundation. “Sometimes we’ve even broken down into tears,” she says. “We get to go home feeling pretty satisfied.”

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Jill Schlesinger is a business analyst for CBS News and author of The Dumb Things Smart People Do With Their Money.