Passengers across the US have faced hours-long security lines and missed flights due to a Department of Homeland Security shutdown that has left Transportation Security Administration (TSA) officers unpaid for weeks. Nearly 500 TSA officers have quit since the shutdown began, prompting the Trump administration to deploy ICE agents to airports, a move widely condemned.
Boston passenger John Hildebrandt described a three-hour wait at US customs in St Thomas. “Absolutely insane. I’ve never experienced motionless queues like this,” he said. Others reported similar delays. Kristin Campos missed her international flight from Miami after a four-hour TSA line, while a Tennessee mother spent over $600 to rebook her daughter’s flight to avoid Atlanta’s five-hour queues.
Some travellers abandoned airports entirely. John in Texas left Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental after a five-hour estimated wait, flying instead from Hobby Airport with no delay. At smaller airports like Tweed New Haven, confusion added to delays. “Chaos reigns,” one passenger said, calling the situation “a manufactured crisis by the Trump administration”.
The disruption has led some to cancel trips. Bronwyn Fryer, 72, from Vermont, scrapped a planned trip to California, citing both queues and the presence of ICE. “I feel like we’re condemned to a never-ending nightmare,” she said. The administration’s handling of immigration and the shutdown continues to draw criticism from the public and lawmakers alike.
