Shutdown sparks flight chaos as TSA lines spill into parking lots with 3-hour waits or longer

Many airports have been grappling with massive security lines as spring break travel kicked off over the weekend amid a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) funding lapse.

Houston ‌Hobby Airport in Houston, Texas, had lines lasting an average of 3.5 hours at one point Sunday — while Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport in Louisiana told passengers to arrive at least three hours before their flights, Reuters reported.

Lauren Bis, DHS Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs, told Fox News Digital in a statement the delays are "severe fallout" from the "Democrat shutdown" of DHS.

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"Today, travelers are facing TSA lines of up to nearly 3 hours long at some major airports, causing missed flights and massive delays during peak travel," said Bis.

"These political stunts force patriotic TSA officers, who protect our skies from serious threats, to work without pay," she said. 

"These frontline heroes received only partial paychecks earlier this month and now face their first full missed paycheck, leading to financial hardship, absences and crippling staffing shortages."

A TSA spokesperson told Fox News Digital passengers should arrive "as early as possible" to avoid missing their flights. 

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"As staffing constraints arise, TSA will evaluate on a case-by-case basis and adjust operations accordingly," said the spokesperson.

Airport wait times are expected to increase as the shutdown continues — leaving TSA officers in a troubling spot.

A trade association representing major U.S. airlines said flights were delayed and passengers missed flights due to long security lines, according to Reuters.

"Congress and the administration must ​act with urgency to ⁠reach a deal that reopens DHS and ends this shutdown. America's transportation security workforce is too important to be used as political leverage," said Airlines for America CEO Chris Sununu in a statement.

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Sununu said TSA officers will receive their first empty paycheck on Friday, according to Reuters.

TSA official Ha Nguyen McNeill told Congress in February that roughly 1,110 transportation security officers left the agency in October and November 2025 amid the 42-day government shutdown, Reuters reported.

With the World Cup less than 100 days away, staffing shortages could become a pressure point at airport checkpoints.

Training a new TSA officer typically takes about four to six months.

Boston-based traveler Eliana Patterson told Reuters that the security lines at the New Orleans airport wrapped throughout the terminal, reaching out through an exit into a nearby parking lot.

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"My flight's been delayed, but if it ​hadn't been I'd be a little worried," she said. 

Reuters contributed reporting.