Did You Know At Least 20 Airports In The U.S. Don’t Have TSA? These Passengers Aren’t Seeing Long Lines

According to a social media post from VMD Corp., the company running checkpoints at Kansas City and Orlando Sanford International airports, travelers are getting through the lines in less than three minutes.

Amid the long lines and chaos unfolding at airports nationwide amid the partial government shutdown, at least 20 airports in the United States are not handled by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). Instead, private companies handle the security screening.

These checkpoints aren’t seeing long lines.

According to CNN, major airports such as San Francisco, Kansas City International, and Orlando Sanford, along with 17 other smaller airports, participate in TSA’s Screening Partnership Program. These airports use contractors at checkpoints. As a result, these airports are not struggling with staffing, and travelers are getting through the lines quicker.

“These 20 airports are completely oblivious to the government shutdown,” Sheldon Jacobson, a professor of computer science who analyzes data to improve aviation security, told CNN in an interview.

It’s quite the juxtaposition at some of the country’s largest airports, where wait times have exceeded two hours as they struggle to get employees to show up for work.

Airport lines got you down? VMD, an Xcelerate Company, has the solution. The professional teams at our SPP airports have less than 3 minute lines. @rio_yamat #letsfly
— VMD Corp an Xcelerate Solutions Company (@vmd_corp) March 11, 2026

Airports Struggle With TSA Agent Staffing

Across the country, wait times at airport security screening are adding up as the partial government shutdown continues. Federal employees in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) are affected, including Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents.

While the partial shutdown began on Saturday, February 14, the weekend of March 21 was the highest call-out rate since the shutdown began, a DHS spokesperson told Travel + Leisure. At least 11.5% of all TSA officers called out on March 22.

“Officers have gone without pay for the third time in nearly six months,” a DHS spokesperson told the publication. “Many TSA officers cannot pay their rent, buy food, or afford to put gas in their cars, forcing them to call out sick from work.”

Among the highest call-out rates, DHS confirmed that more than 47% of TSA officers did not report for duty at William P. Hobby Airport (HOU), and more than 42% did not report for duty at George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH). Both airports are in Houston.

Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (MSY) saw call-out rates of 34.1%, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) saw a 33.6% call-out, and New York’s John F. Kennedy International (JFK) had a 33.4% call-out rate.

Arrival times, meanwhile, remain unpredictable.