The recent rise in complaints against major airlines has prompted Connecticut Attorney General William Tong to take action, starting with joining the bipartisan Airline Passenger Protection Partnership.

News 12 Connecticut’s Tom Krosnowski was at Tweed New Haven airport on Wednesday morning to hear more from passengers who are fed up.

“The line was out the door, the TSA machine was down,” said Deanna, of West Haven. “We have to reschedule, our bags are on the Orlando flight.”

“You don't get anything back half the time,” said Tracey, of North Carolina.

“We were in Hawaii, and they lost our bags, so we had to buy new clothes,” said Sandy, of Shelton.

These are the types of incidents that Tong will now be able to investigate in Connecticut –  with the goal of holding airlines accountable when baggage is lost or stuck hundreds of miles away.

“Customers have a much tougher time traveling than they used to. Lost bags, fees. Everything's more expensive, and the service isn't what it used to be,” said Tong.

Connecticut is one of 15 states that has joined the bipartisan Airline Passenger Protection Partnership. It allows the state attorney general to investigate consumer complaints against airlines, something that only the federal Department of Transportation could do before.

“This is a really big deal for travelers from Connecticut and for Connecticut residents,” said Tong. “Now, we have the explicit authority through the  secretary of transportation to hold airlines accountable.”

Other priorities from the DOT include fee-free family seating, fee transparency and prompt refunds.

“If they've done something wrong, they should step up and do the right thing. And if they don't cooperate when they've done something wrong, then I have the ability now to escalate and team up with the Department of Transportation,” said Tong.