Finally, Travelers Can Leave Laptops in Their Bags

Air travelers in U.S. airports will soon be able to pass through security with liquids and laptops intact in their carry-on bags.

In a press call Friday, the TSA announced that it has signed a $97 million contract for 300 upgraded baggage-scanning machines. As reported by Bloomberg Government, the new technology will roll out this summer, with the recipient airports to be announced.

It's akin to replacing X-ray machines with CT scanners. While an x-ray creates a single static image, a CT scan can produce a 360-degree image.

The new scanners are better able to see sizes, shape, and position of structures in your image. This new screening technology will allow officials to detect items they previously couldn't -- and allow laptops and toiletries to stay in bags.

Over the next eight years, the TSA expects to replace more than 2,000 x-ray machines with the new CT equipment. While the pilot program didn't result in decreased wait times, the agency expects that it will as staffers get used to the new process.

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