Updated March 17, 2026
Powerful storms across the Midwest and East Coast and thinning TSA ranks left travelers facing hundreds of canceled flights and thousands more delayed on Tuesday.
A partial government shutdown that began Feb. 14 has affected the Department of Homeland Security, which includes the Transportation Security Administration, and held up pay for many TSA employees. More than 300 TSA workers have resigned since the shutdown began and call-out rates have more than doubled, according to data obtained by CBS News. Call-outs were highest Monday, following elevated rates Sunday and Saturday.
Some large airports reported particularly high absenteeism: 35% of TSA staff called out in Houston, 37% in Atlanta, nearly 39% in New Orleans and 30% at New York’s JFK. Philadelphia International Airport said it will close additional security checkpoints starting Wednesday if the shutdown continues.
Crowds from spring break travel and March Madness compounded the problem. Flight-tracking service FlightAware reported more than 1,100 U.S. flights canceled and over 8,200 delayed as of Tuesday night. Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport was hit hardest, with more than 200 flights canceled and over 500 delayed. On Monday, FlightAware recorded about 600 cancellations at Chicago O’Hare, more than 470 at Atlanta and over 450 at LaGuardia.
Security wait times spiked: peak TSA lines reached roughly 120 minutes in Atlanta, 103 minutes in Houston, and about an hour in Austin and at Chicago O’Hare. The FAA cited severe weather when issuing ground stops at Hartsfield-Jackson and Charlotte Douglas and ground delays at JFK and Newark Liberty.
Travelers described long, uncomfortable waits and added expenses. Kelly Price, returning from Orlando to Colorado, said her flight wasn’t canceled until early Monday and she ended up sleeping on the airport floor. Danielle Cash, stranded in St. Louis after a girls’ trip to Las Vegas, said she’s spending several hundred dollars more than planned on a hotel and will reroute through Tennessee to get to Tampa. In Atlanta, Mel Stewart and his wife arrived four hours early to allow for longer-than-usual TSA lines.
TSA union leaders warned waits will lengthen further if the shutdown continues but said many officers are still coming to work despite financial strain. Aaron Barker, a local leader with the American Federation of Government Employees, described the impact on employees: “Many TSA workers are coping with eviction notices, vehicle repossessions, empty refrigerators and overdrawn bank accounts.” Supporters at some airports held signs reading, “We want a paycheck, not a rain check.”
Airports have urged travelers to arrive earlier than usual. New Orleans’ Louis Armstrong International recommended passengers arrive at least three hours before departure. Austin’s airport posted video showing a security line spilling onto the sidewalk.
Democrats in Congress have said they will not approve funding for Homeland Security until new limits are placed on federal immigration operations. This is the third shutdown in less than a year to leave TSA workers temporarily without pay; employees are to receive back pay once the government reopens.