ICE agents appear at airports as TSA delays snarl check-in

Travelers wait in long lines early in the morning at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on March 27, 2026 in Atlanta, Ga. The travel disruptions continue as hundreds of TSA agents quit or work without pay during a partial government shutdown. U.S. President Donald Trump deployed ICE agents to U.S. airports on Monday, with border czar Tom Homan in charge of the effort.

Travelers pass an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (I.C.E.)agent while waiting in line at Terminal E at George Bush Intercontinental Airport on March 24, 2026 in Houston, Texas. The travel disruptions continue as hundreds of TSA agents quit or work without pay during a partial government shutdown. U.S. President Donald Trump said ICE agents will be deployed to U.S. airports on Monday, with border czar Tom Homan in charge of the effort.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents patrol Dulles International Airport on March 24, 2026 in Virginia. The travel disruptions continue as hundreds of TSA agents quit or work without pay during a partial government shutdown. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were ordered to deploy to airportsto help fill TSA staffing gaps across the country.

People wait in TSA security lines at New York's LaGuardia Airport, March 24, 2026.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents patrol Terminal C at LaGuardia Airport on March 24, 2026 in New York City.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) are seen at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston on March 23, 2026.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents patrol Terminal B at LaGuardia Airport on March 23, 2026 in New York City.

A Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agent works alongside a TSA officer in the TSA security area at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City, March 23, 2026.

Demonstrators protest against ICE at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on March 23, 2026 in Atlanta.

ICE agents watch an Anti-ICE demonstration at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on March 23, 2026 in Atlanta.

Federal agents with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) work at a security checkpoint in Terminal 4 at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, on March 23, 2026. Hundreds of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were ordered to deploy to airports to help fill TSA staffing gaps across the country.

Federal law enforcement agents watch as travelers arrive at a security checkpoint in Terminal 4 at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, on March 23, 2026.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents gather while patrolling around Terminal A at Newark Liberty International Airport on Monday, March 23, 2026, in Newark.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents patrol at John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York City, March 23, 2026.

Travelers stand in long lines at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on March 23, 2026 in Atlanta. The travel disruptions continue as hundreds of TSA agents quit or work without pay during a partial government shutdown.

ICE agents walk through the airport drinking coffee as travelers stand in long lines at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on March 23, 2026 in Atlanta.

People wait in TSA security lines at John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York City, March 23, 2026

Passengers wait in lines as they maneuver toward a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) checkpoint after hundreds of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were ordered to deploy to airports to help fill TSA staffing gaps, at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Atlanta, March 23, 2026.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents gather while patrolling around Terminal A at Newark Liberty International Airport on Monday, March 23, 2026, in Newark.

Travelers stand in long a line outside of Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on March 23, 2026 in Atlanta. The travel disruptions continue as hundreds of TSA agents quit or work without pay during a partial government shutdown. President Donald Trump said ICE agents will be deployed to airports on Monday, with border czar Tom Homan in charge of the effort.

ICE agents look on as travelers stand in long lines at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on March 23, 2026 in Atlanta.

Passengers wait in lines as they maneuver toward a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) checkpoint after hundreds of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents were ordered to deploy to airports to help fill TSA staffing gaps, at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Atlanta.

A traveler talks to a group of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents walk around Terminal A at Newark Liberty International Airport on Monday, March 23, 2026, in Newark.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents walk around Terminal A at Newark Liberty International Airport on Monday, March 23, 2026, in Newark.

People wait in TSA security lines at John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York City, March 23, 2026.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers move through the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on March 23, 2026.

ICE agents walk through a long line of travelers at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on March 23, 2026 in Atlanta.

Passengers make their way to a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) checkpoint at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) in Los Angeles, California, March 23, 2026.

TSA desks sit empty as travelers stand in long lines at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on March 22, 2026 in Atlanta.

TSA agents process people through security lines at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on March 22, 2026 in Atlanta.

Travelers stand in long lines at Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport on March 22, 2026 in Atlanta.