Today is the day the math got worse. TSA officers across the country missed their first full paycheck Saturday, March 14 — the same day millions of spring break travelers head to airports. The partial government shutdown began on February 14 after lawmakers failed to reach a funding deal for the Department of Homeland Security. One month in, the aviation system is buckling.

How Bad Are the Lines Right Now

William P. Hobby Airport in Houston was experiencing wait times of 2 hours and 45 minutes just before noon Sunday, the worst of the affected airports. The airport warned passengers that TSA wait times may exceed three hours and urged travelers to arrive four to five hours before their flights.

New Orleans Louis Armstrong International Airport had lines lasting an average of 3.5 hours at one point — while the airport told passengers to arrive at least three hours before departure.

Charlotte Douglas International reported 47-minute average waits. Phoenix Sky Harbor held around 10 minutes as of Monday morning. Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson and Charlotte Douglas are running roughly one hour. The variation is the problem — there is no reliable way to predict which airport spikes next.

Why Today Gets Worse

TSA screeners are about to miss a paycheck just as the Spring Break travel season heats up. Workers did receive a partial paycheck on February 28 — but the first full missed paycheck lands Saturday, March 14.

More than 300 TSA officers have left their posts since the start of the shutdown, and the call-out rate is now at 7 percent — with industry leaders warning it could double within two weeks as screeners scramble to find jobs where they can actually get paid.

TSA union secretary-treasurer Johnny Jones put the human cost directly. "Over the last 15 months, TSA officers have gone through three government shutdowns," he said, adding that it took months for many workers to financially recover from the previous 43-day shutdown. Some are donating plasma. Others are being evicted.

PreCheck Is Open. Global Entry Is Back. The TSA App Is Not Reliable.

Global Entry, which had been suspended since February 22, restarted at 5 a.m. ET Wednesday after DHS reversed course under pressure. TSA PreCheck lanes remain open at most airports — despite DHS originally announcing they would close to consolidate staffing.

The TSA's real-time wait time app is not being regularly updated during the shutdown. Check your specific airport's social media account on X the morning of your flight for the most current conditions. Dallas Fort Worth maintains its own real-time security monitoring page online.

Mobile Passport Control and CLEAR are still running at participating airports and can save meaningful time where available.

Airports With the Longest Known Delays

Houston Hobby (HOU) remains the most severe — three-hour waits reported both Sunday and Monday, a sustained pattern. New Orleans (MSY) advises arriving three hours early, with waits fluctuating between 15 minutes and two hours depending on time of day. Atlanta (ATL) is running approximately one hour. Charlotte (CLT) is around 47 minutes. Austin-Bergstrom (AUS) and Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP) have both seen regional impact as spring break volumes climb.

Southwest has adapted at Hobby — the airline is now accepting checked bags up to five hours before departure there, and passengers can change flights without additional cost.

What Congress Can Do — and Hasn't

DHS is the last federal agency not funded by Congress for the rest of the fiscal year. A series of short-term extensions kept it alive, but the last two-week extension ran out nearly a month ago.

Airlines for America CEO Chris Sununu was direct. "Airlines have done their part to prepare; now 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."

No funding deal is imminent as of Saturday morning. If you are flying this weekend: arrive early, use PreCheck or CLEAR if you have it, and check your airport's X account before you leave the house.