George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston has become a high-visibility example of how the partial government shutdown has rippled through U.S. air travel, particularly at TSA security checkpoints where staffing shortfalls have lengthened lines. Travelers reported long waits on the ground even as other airports nationwide also faced prolonged security screening during the shutdown period.
In Houston, TSA security delays were described as most severe at the airport’s main checkpoint lanes, where travelers said they were being told to expect extremely long waits to get through screening. Edgaer Fernando, traveling to Guatemala, said on Tuesday that he had been in the airport since 8 a.m. and was “very tired, queuing and queuing and very slow,” according to a report by the Associated Press.
Airport and union officials pointed to several factors that they said help explain why Bush Intercontinental appeared to be hit harder than other airports. Johnny Jones, secretary and treasurer for Council 100 of the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents TSA workers nationwide, said callouts among TSA staff were contributing to fewer workers on duty. Jones also cited economic pressures facing TSA employees, including difficulties and debt from a previous shutdown and higher costs for groceries and gas.
Jones said the callout rate in Houston has averaged between 35% and 40% and that the difference from other cities stood out. He said that while 11% of TSA workers nationally did not show up for work on Tuesday, the figure was nearly 40% at Bush Intercontinental and even higher at Hobby, Houston’s other major airport, where it reached 43%. He also pointed to the scale of operations at Bush Intercontinental, noting that the airport served more than 48.4 million passengers in 2024, compared with 14.6 million at Hobby.
Officials said the checkpoint capacity at Bush Intercontinental was reduced relative to typical operations. Jim Szczesniak, director of aviation for the Houston Airport System, said that the airport usually has 37 TSA checkpoint lanes operating but that during the shutdown only between a third and 50% of lanes were being operated, according to his remarks in a video posted on social media Tuesday. Szczesniak also warned that conditions could worsen at airports across the country until Congress ends the shutdown.
Union officials also discussed a broader pattern of TSA staffing instability. Jones said no TSA workers had been hired around the country in about a year, and he described how that backdrop could leave airports like Bush Intercontinental vulnerable even beyond shutdown-specific callouts. He also said Bush Intercontinental’s role as a major hub contributed to heavy passenger throughput, including the fact that the airport handled 34.8 million passengers from United Airlines out of 48.4 million total passengers in 2024.
Houston’s travel calendar also added pressure. The city hosted a slate of major events in March, including World Baseball Classic games and CERAWeek, a major energy conference with more than 10,000 participants. The report also cited the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, which it said drew 2.6 million attendees during its three-week duration, and it noted that two NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 games were scheduled to be played in Houston this week.
Despite the reported delays at TSA checkpoints, Mayor John Whitmire said in a statement that the slowdowns were not appearing to be hurting tourism. Whitmire said the delays were frustrating for travelers but did not appear to be impacting tourism, adding that Houston was experiencing what he described as the strongest month of March for hotel rooms and reservations in the city’s history.
By Wednesday, TSA wait times at Bush Intercontinental seemed to improve, according to the report. Raj Chauhan, traveling to Miami, said on Wednesday that “Everyone’s trying their best” and thanked TSA members who were working, as the lines appeared to move faster than the previous day.