AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 33-9093.00

Will AI replace Transportation Security Screeners?

Transportation Security Screeners: AI does not yet handle any of the role's 26 tasks; the work mostly needs a standard-tier model.

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Every task, scored

The 26 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Transportation Security Screeners, from most to least exposed. None reaches 60, the level at which AI already handles a task.

Task AI exposure Evidence Model tier Importance
View images of checked bags and cargo, using remote screening equipment, and alert baggage screeners or handlers to any possible problems. 55 Estimated Standard 4.7
Test baggage for any explosive materials, using equipment such as explosive detection machines or chemical swab systems. 55 Estimated Standard 4.7
Perform pat-down or hand-held wand searches of passengers who have triggered machine alarms, who are unable to pass through metal detectors, or who have been randomly identified for such searches. 55 Estimated Efficient 4.7
Notify supervisors or other appropriate personnel when security breaches occur. 55 Estimated Standard 4.6
Send checked baggage through automated screening machines, and set bags aside for searching or rescreening as indicated by equipment. 55 Estimated Standard 4.6
Decide whether baggage that triggers alarms should be searched or should be allowed to pass through. 55 Estimated Frontier 4.6
Follow those who breach security until police or other security personnel arrive to apprehend them. 55 Estimated Standard 4.6
Inform other screeners when baggage should not be opened because it might contain explosives. 55 Estimated Standard 4.5
Ask passengers to remove shoes and divest themselves of metal objects prior to walking through metal detectors. 55 Estimated Standard 4.4
Close entry areas following security breaches or reopen areas after receiving notification that the airport is secure. 55 Estimated Efficient 4.3
Challenge suspicious people, requesting their badges and asking what their business is in a particular areas. 55 Estimated Efficient 4.2
Patrol work areas to detect any suspicious items. 55 Estimated Standard 4.2
Contact police directly in cases of urgent security issues, using phones or two-way radios. 55 Estimated Standard 4.2
Record information about any baggage that sets off alarms in monitoring equipment. 55 Estimated Efficient 4.2
Watch for potentially dangerous persons whose pictures are posted at checkpoints. 55 Estimated Standard 4.0
Contact leads or supervisors to discuss objects of concern that are not on prohibited object lists. 55 Estimated Standard 4.0
Confiscate dangerous items and hazardous materials found in opened bags and turn them over to airlines for disposal. 55 Estimated Efficient 3.9
Monitor passenger flow through screening checkpoints to ensure order and efficiency. 55 Estimated Standard 3.8
Inform passengers of how to mail prohibited items to themselves, or confiscate these items. 55 Estimated Efficient 3.6
Provide directions and respond to passenger inquiries. 55 Estimated Standard 3.4
Direct passengers to areas where they can pick up their baggage after screening is complete. 55 Estimated Standard 3.4
Check passengers' tickets to ensure that they are valid, and to determine whether passengers have designations that require special handling, such as providing photo identification. 50 Estimated Efficient 4.7
Inspect carry-on items, using x-ray viewing equipment, to determine whether items contain objects that warrant further investigation. 20 Estimated Efficient 4.9
Locate suspicious bags pictured in printouts sent from remote monitoring areas, and set these bags aside for inspection. 20 Estimated Efficient 4.6
Inspect checked baggage for signs of tampering. 20 Estimated Efficient 4.4
Search carry-on or checked baggage by hand when it is suspected to contain prohibited items such as weapons. 8 Estimated No tier 4.8

Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 0 of 26 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 26 of 26. Importance is O*NET's 1 to 5 rating of how central the task is. Model tier is the lowest tier that can do the task under the published rubric; "No tier" marks hands-on work.

The model tier this role needs

A standard-tier model or lower covers 92% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 96% of the work is something AI can address at some tier, and 4% is hands-on.

Efficient, standard and frontier tiers come from the JobRoute model tier reference. The recommended tier is the lowest one that covers 80% of the work AI can address. How the method works.

Wages, employment and outlook

US employment
50,290
Median annual wage
$66,770
Middle half of earners
$57,050 to $72,820
Projected change, 2024 to 2034
-6.0%

Employment and wages: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, national. Projection: BLS Employment Projections 2024 to 2034.

Adjacent roles

The occupations that reuse the most of this role's skills, with the usual time to move. These are the first places to look when you plan to redeploy or retrain people in this role.

Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.

Questions about Transportation Security Screeners and AI

Will AI replace Transportation Security Screeners?

Not on current evidence. None of the 26 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation reaches a task exposure of 60, the level at which JobRoute counts a task as handled by AI, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 48 out of 100. JobRoute scores tasks, not whole jobs, so the score shows how much of the work changes rather than whether the job disappears.

What is the AI exposure of Transportation Security Screeners?

48 out of 100 on JobRoute's task exposure measure, the importance-weighted average of the role's O*NET task scores. Higher means more of the work is AI-doable today. 0 of the 26 task scores are observed in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), and the other 26 are estimated from each task's O*NET work activity.

Which Transportation Security Screeners tasks can AI already do?

None reaches 60 yet. The most exposed task is: View images of checked bags and cargo, using remote screening equipment, and alert baggage screeners or handlers to any possible problems, at 55 out of 100.

What AI model tier does this role need?

A standard-tier model or lower covers 92% of the role's importance-weighted task work. JobRoute assigns each task the lowest tier that can do it under a published rubric and recommends the lowest tier that covers 80% of the work AI can address.

How many people work as Transportation Security Screeners, and what do they earn?

50,290 people in the United States, with a median annual wage of $66,770 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). BLS Employment Projections expect a change of -6.0% from 2024 to 2034.

How to cite

Data version 2026-11-02, JobRoute method v1.0.0. Download all occupations or this occupation as JSON. Methodology.

JobRoute (2026). AI exposure: Transportation Security Screeners. Data version 2026-11-02, method v1.0.0. Built on O*NET 30.3, BLS OEWS May 2025 and the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026). CC BY 4.0. https://www.jobroute.ai/jobs/transportation-security-screeners

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