LINTHICUM, Md. — The partial government shutdown is significantly impacting BWI Airport's TSA workforce who are going without pay.
On Sunday BWI was among the top three airports with the highest call-outs rates in the nation, topping 38 percent, which is more than the 37.4 percent that New York's JFK Airport reported.
BWI was among multiple airports with high TSA callout rates on Sunday 3/22 at 38.1% per @DHSgov @WMAR2News pic.twitter.com/eQ3lpElCQR
— Blair Sabol TV (@BlairSabolTV) March 23, 2026
By Monday, things improved with no major delays reported.
However, several TSA services at BWI are being scaled back, including PreCheck and Clear.
The only security checkpoints operating as of publishing time were C, D & E.
It's not just BWI feeling the strain, as 11.76 percent of the entire TSA called out Sunday, the highest rate since the shutdown began.
That number equates to more than 3,450 TSA members missing work.
“This pointless, reckless shutdown of our homeland security workforce has caused more than 400 TSA officers to quit and thousands to call out from work because they are not able to afford gas, childcare, food, or rent," Lauren Bis, Acting Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs at DHS, told WMAR in an email.
In an attempt to mitigate security staffing shortages, President Donald Trump on Monday began deploying ICE agents to more than a dozen airports throughout the country.
"This will help bolster TSA efforts to keep our skies safe and minimize air travel disruptions," said Bis.
So far, no ICE agents have been sent to BWI.
Officials are still urging travelers to be at the airport at least three hours before departure to avoid missing their flight.
Below is a list of airports where ICE is currently assigned, as per ABC News:
- Chicago-O'Hare International Airport
- Cleveland Hopkins International Airport
- Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport
- Houston's William P. Hobby Airport
- Houston's Bush Intercontinental
- John F. Kennedy International Airport (New York)
- LaGuardia Airport (New York)
- Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport
- Luis Munoz Marin International Airport (San Juan, Puerto Rico)
- Newark Liberty International Airport
- Philadelphia International Airport
- Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport
- Pittsburgh International Airport
- Southwest Florida International Airport (Fort Myers, Florida)
Editor's Note: A previous version of this story stated that BWI had the highest rate of call-outs among major airports on Sunday. The Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) and George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston (IAH) both had higher call-out rates.
