Mohan Sinha
18 Mar 2026

NEW YORK City, New York: The chief executives of the country's major airline companies are urging Congress to restore funding to the Department of Homeland Security and support a bipartisan plan to pay federal aviation workers, including airport security officers, during the partial government shutdown.

In an open letter to Congress, published online and in The Washington Post on March 15, executives from airlines such as American, Delta, Southwest, JetBlue, UPS, FedEx, and Atlas Air said, "Once again, air travel is the political football amid another government shutdown."

The executives pleaded that Congress should pass the Aviation Funding Solvency Act and the Aviation Funding Stability Act. This would guarantee a salary for air traffic controllers, irrespective of the government's funding status, as well as under the Keep America Flying Act. It would offer the same protections to Transportation Security Administration officers who provide security and screen travelers.

The letter said it was difficult, if not impossible, to put food on the workers' table, put gas in the car, and pay rent when they are not getting paid.

The current partial government shutdown affects only the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). Democrats in Congress have refused to approve funding for the department because they oppose some of its immigration enforcement practices.

This is the third shutdown in less than a year. Because of it, TSA workers are temporarily working without pay and will have to wait for back pay once the government reopens.

Democratic lawmakers say they will not approve funding for DHS until new limits are placed on federal immigration operations. Their demands come after the fatal shootings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minneapolis earlier this year during immigration enforcement actions.

Airline CEOs said the timing is especially concerning. Spring break travel is already underway, the 2026 FIFA World Cup is approaching, and the U.S. will celebrate its 250th anniversary this year. Airlines expect about 171 million passengers to travel during the spring season.

As the shutdown continues, more U.S. airports are reporting long security lines. Officials from the TSA and Homeland Security say the delays are partly due to the shutdown and have blamed Democrats for the situation.

Homeland Security also said on its X account last week that more than 300 TSA agents have resigned since the shutdown began.