March 15, 2026 — Washington, D.C. — CEOs from major U.S. airlines including American, Delta, United and Southwest issued a joint open letter to Congress, urging lawmakers to fund the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and end the 29-day partial government shutdown that has left approximately 50,000 TSA officers working without pay.
The executives, including Robert Isom of American Airlines, Ed Bastian of Delta Air Lines, Scott Kirby of United Airlines and Bob Jordan of Southwest Airlines, highlighted severe staffing shortages at TSA checkpoints. More than 300 officers have resigned since the shutdown began on February 13, with doubled absenteeism rates contributing to security lines stretching 2 to 4 hours nationwide, according to Reuters and TSA reports cited in multiple outlets.
TSA officers just received $0 paychecks. That is simply unacceptable.
The letter stated, emphasizing the hardship on workers unable to cover basic expenses.
Spring Break Travel Disruptions
The crisis coincides with peak spring break travel, as airlines anticipate a record 171 million passengers—a 4% increase year-over-year. Recent storms and staffing issues have led to over 2,000 flight cancellations, exacerbating chaos at major airports like Houston Hobby, New Orleans and Newark, where lines exceeded two hours last week [3][4][5].
US Airlines CEOs Urge Congress to End DHS Shutdown Amid TSA Staffing Crisis and Spring Break Chaos, as major carriers including American, Delta, United and Southwest press for immediate action amid over 300 resignations, doubled absences and 3-4 hour lines nationwide, per YouTube reports and coverage.
Airports have advised travelers to arrive up to four hours early, with some closing checkpoints or fundraising for TSA workers [6].
Calls for Permanent Protections
The CEOs described air travel as a “political football” and called for bipartisan legislation including the Aviation Funding Solvency Act, Aviation Funding Stability Act for air traffic controllers, and Keep America Flying Act for TSA and customs agents.
First, leaders should immediately come together to reach an agreement to fund the Department of Homeland Security. Then they need to act so this problem never happens again.
Polling cited in the letter showed 93% of Americans support paying federal aviation workers during shutdowns, with 88% predicting repeated long lines without pay guarantees [1][2].
US Airlines CEOs Urge Congress to End DHS Shutdown Amid TSA Staffing Crisis and Spring Break Chaos, with executives from 10 carriers signing on, as reported by Barron’s and USA Today. The group includes cargo operators like UPS and FedEx.
This follows a failed Senate vote on March 12 and echoes disruptions from a prior 43-day shutdown last fall. U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy stated, “We are going to get through this.”
The letter was released by Airlines for America, representing passenger and cargo airlines.
