DHS Shutdown Strands Spring-Break Travelers in Hours-Long TSA Lines at Major Airports

A partial shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security left roughly 50,000 TSA screeners working without pay.

“I'm unable to access the specific article from The Hill due to restrictions on their website”

The Hill

The shutdown produced multi-hour security lines at major U.S. airports during the spring-break travel rush, forcing travelers into queues that stretched through terminals and outside buildings.

USA TODAY

The delays caused missed flights and disruptions as carriers prepared for a projected ~171 million passengers over the season.

Airports singled out for unusually long waits included Houston’s William P. Hobby (with lines averaging about 3.5 hours at one point and about three hours by 6 p.m.), New Orleans, George Bush Intercontinental (Houston), Charlotte Douglas and Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta.

Airlines and DHS warned the shutdown’s staffing crunch was to blame and urged Congress to reopen DHS to restore airport operations.

Travelers and airports reported operational fallout beyond long lines: missed flights and delays during one of the busiest travel seasons as carriers prepared for what USA TODAY described as a record-level travel period.

The staffing gaps - tied directly to the DHS funding lapse - were cited by both airlines and DHS as the proximate cause, and both parties publicly called on Congress to resolve the shutdown so screening operations could normalize.

USA TODAY

The DHS funding lapse coincided with abrupt leadership changes at the department.

“I'm unable to access the specific article from The Hill due to restrictions on their website”

The Hill

President Trump announced he removed Kristi Noem as secretary and named her special envoy for a new "Shield of the Americas" initiative.

USA TODAY framed those leadership moves alongside the operational crisis at screening checkpoints, noting the overlap in timing between policy and personnel shifts and the shutdown's effects on frontline operations.

USA TODAY’s coverage emphasized the human and logistical dimensions of the shutdown.

It described frontline TSA workers performing essential security work without pay, travelers stranded during spring break, and airlines warning of broader disruption unless the funding impasse was resolved.

USA TODAY

The article linked the staffing shortfall to delays at named airports and highlighted industry and DHS appeals to Congress to reopen funding to relieve the staffing crunch.