Travel Trouble

TSA Staffing Issues Cancel Flights Everywhere

Photo by Andrew Gwizdowski on Unsplash

The Transportation Security Administration, better known as TSA, is a U.S. federal agency created after the 9/11 incident to ensure safe flights through bag checks and screenings before passengers enter their airport gate. At the forefront of TSA’s work are their employees, who make sure that these protective measures are completed.

Due to a government shutdown beginning in February, TSA staff have been forced to work without pay for several weeks. This has caused many of these employees to quit, subsequently changing the schedule of flights, creating long lines at bag checks and limiting airport operations at places like the Tallahassee International Airport. As travel chaos ensues across the nation, U.S. senators are scrambling to come to an agreement on how funding in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees the TSA, should be distributed.

“We’ve made progress today,” U.S. Senator Chris Murphy said. “We’ll obviously be willing to make more progress, but it’s up to the people that run this place as to whether they want to get a deal done or not.”