The world’s busiest airport has descended into chaos amid massive security lines caused by the ongoing government shutdown.
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport saw major delays on Friday, with security waits for travelers reaching around two hours after TSA workers’ pay was stopped.
The lines are so long that they have spilled beyond screening checkpoints and into the baggage claim area.
Atlanta airport officials are expecting about 350,000 passengers to move through the hub from yesterday through Sunday.
The waits come as TSA staffing has been thinned because of the ongoing government shutdown, for which there is no immediate end in sight.
Many agents have missed paychecks as a result, in turn causing a wave of callouts.
The airport employs more than 1,000 TSA workers, but at least a third of those have been unavailable at times this week.
Travelers have been urged to arrive at least three hours early, beyond the usual two-hour guidance, to avoid missing their flights.
Approximately 350,000 passengers to move through the Atlanta airport from yesterday, Thursday, through Sunday
Security waits for travelers reached around two hours on Friday, with the airport asking travelers to arrive up to three hours early or risk missing their flights
More than 1,000 TSA workers are employed Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, but many are calling out due to the ongoing government shutdown
However, one traveler said that the plea for an early arrival did not seem to matter.
‘I don’t think it’s going to be enough,’ Sydni Greer, who was travelling to Los Angeles, told Atlanta News First.
Another passenger said that the havoc caused by the TSA pay stop was evident.
‘I was checking in, and I was like, ‘Oh, it’s already [been] an hour thirty,” Cristal Brown, who was flying to Boston, said.
As of this afternoon, 203 delays and 10 cancellations have been reported, according to FlightAware.
The timing is especially bad because it coincides with the spring break period during which lots of flights cross through the busiest travel hub in the US.
On Thursday, the callout rate at Atlanta’s airport soared to 38 percent, WRDW reported.
TSA workers missed a full paycheck last week because the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is shutdown.
At least 366 agents nationwide have quit their jobs, the DHS said.
Upcoming spring breaks across Georgia and major global sporting events like the Masters golf tournament and the upcoming FIFA World Cup could further strain the airport if the shutdown continues.
The Department of Homeland Security has said that many TSA officers cannot pay their rent, afford gas or buy food
The partial government shutdown comes from a congressional deadlock over funding for the DHS, which oversees TSA
As of this afternoon, 203 delays and 10 cancellations had been reported in the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport
A longtime TSA worker said going without pay prevented some agents from traveling to work or supporting their families.
‘Whether it’s ‘I can’t put gas in my car,’ ‘I have to take care of my children,’ ‘I have to pay my light bill so that my lights won’t get cut off,’ … those are the reasons that officers are not showing up,’ Aaron Barker, president of American Federation of Government Employees Local 554 in Atlanta, said, per the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
‘Officers are scared,’ Barker added. ‘They don’t know what to do.’
The partial government shutdown stems from a congressional deadlock over funding for the DHS, which oversees TSA.
Democrats want changes to federal immigration enforcement, which US president Donald Trump and congressional Republicans have not agreed to.
In turn, many TSA workers ‘are coping with eviction notices, vehicle repossessions, empty refrigerators and overdrawn bank accounts,’ Barker said.
‘The mental stress, it’s just unbearable,’ he added.
On Thursday, three of the four checkpoints in the domestic terminal were shuttered, which left just the main checkpoint open
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport has had the highest average callout rate during the shutdown so far at 21.5 percent
To date, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport has had the highest average callout rate during the shutdown so far at 21.5 percent.
One of the four domestic security checkpoints at the airport has been closed most of this week, prompting even longer lines at the remaining lanes.
On Thursday, three of the four checkpoints in the domestic terminal were shuttered, leaving just the main checkpoint open.
The airport madness is expected to continue as long as TSA workers do not get paid.
‘They can’t afford to come in and they’re going to quit altogether,’ Adam Stahl, the TSA acting deputy administrator, told WSBTV. ‘That’s a serious concern.’
The DHS has also said that many TSA officers cannot pay their rent, afford gas or buy food.
Some were having to sleep at airports because they could not commute home, according to the agency, which said that ‘Democrats must end this madness.’
Other airports with high average TSA callout rates during the shutdown include New York’s John F Kennedy International Airport at 21.4 percent, Houston Hobby at 21 percent and New Orleans at 16.5 percent, according to the DHS.
