Key Highlights
- US airline CEOs urge Congress to end shutdown and pay airport workers.
- Air travel is being disrupted due to the ongoing DHS funding issue.
- TSA workers are experiencing a staffing shortage, leading to longer queues at airports.
- President Trump urged TSA agents to “go to work” on social media.
The Airline CEOs’ Plea: A Political Football Once Again?
You might think this is new, but once again, air travel has become a political football amid another government shutdown. Major airline CEOs have written to lawmakers demanding funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).
Air Travel and the Shutdown: A Mess
The partial shutdown began on 14 February, when Democrats refused to fund the DHS without more restrictions on US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The Trump administration has blamed delays on Democrats, while Republicans have pushed for funding that includes immigration reforms. TSA workers missed their first full paycheck on Friday but are required to continue working as they are considered essential.
The Impact: Longer Queues and Delays
More than 300 TSA employees have quit, according to DHS, and call-out rates have more than doubled since the funding lapse began. This staffing shortage, coupled with severe weather warnings and spring break, has triggered some travel disruption at the weekend. In Austin, Texas, wait times exceeded 100 minutes. Travellers at Fort Lauderdale International Airport and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport also experienced long queues.
President Trump’s Call to Action
US President Donald Trump on Sunday urged TSA agents to “go to work,” writing on Truth Social: “I promise that I will never forget you!!!” The partial shutdown has not only affected air travel but also the broader economy. Thousands of people face long queues at airports in Houston and New Orleans, and some are advised to arrive 2.5 hours before their domestic flight departures due to delays.
Meanwhile, Denver International Airport, Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, and Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas have asked travellers to donate items or gift cards to TSA employees working without pay. Antoinette Wade, President of the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), which oversees 13 airports in Louisiana and Mississippi, expressed concern about the toll the shutdown was having on TSA workers.
“In any other job setting this would be inexcusable,” she said. “It doesn’t make it excusable because we work for the federal government.”
