Are U.S. Airports Still Safe?

By Christopher Kinsley

Last week an airplane collided with a firetruck on the runway of La Guardia airport, killing two pilots, as millions of Americans are struggling to get through TSA security in under six hours. These events both have different causes but are linked by their effect on the nation and on national security.

An air traffic controller had mistakenly cleared a firetruck to cross a runway believed to be empty near midnight last Sunday. He quickly attempted to correct his error and tell the firetruck to stop but it was too late, the truck was struck on its side by a plane coming down the runway after a landing. Both pilots were killed and over forty passengers were injured. The shortage of air traffic controllers has been an ongoing issue which stems from the position’s long and difficult hiring process. Previous government shutdowns in 2013 and 2018 froze all hiring and training for the role, followed by the COVID-19 pandemic which suspended training for another four months, resulting in reduced capacity for new hires two years after the end of the pandemic. This, combined with an increasing number of flights per year, led to the current controller shortage and possibly the La Guardia collision.

The TSA is also suffering from government shutdowns, with employees finishing their sixth week without pay. Lines to pass through security have reportedly taken some travelers over eight hours, causing many to miss their flight. While TSA shortages may seem like a nuisance for travelers, the issue is a serious national security risk.

The National Terrorism Advisory System (NTAS) released a warning of a “heightened threat environment” last June when the U.S. struck Iran’s nuclear sites. The warning expired in September and was the last bulletin released by the agency. Despite the lack of a warning from NTAS, congested airports, lack of security, and a shortage of essential personnel create the perfect conditions for bad actors to take advantage of the situation. Mainly, Iranian sympathizers or Islamic extremists who may be emboldened by the chaos and inspired by the Iran war. The possibility of a major terrorist attack on U.S. airports concerned Americans before the war on Iran and those concerns have only risen higher.
It appears that President Trump is also concerned with this possibility as he tasked ICE with aiding TSA agents, however many are skeptical of their true goals and are concerned they will either pivot to their deportation agenda or establish their presence at airports now to use them for arrests later. The President then signed an executive order which would see the TSA receive paychecks as early as Monday, March 30th. Hopefully the resumed pay will see the TSA employees return to work or train new agents to replace those that are left. However, it’s possible that the increasing frequency of government shutdowns and the resulting disfunction in American airports, have turned away many would-be applicants to the position, creating long term shortages.

With the current situation, and an 18% increase in ticket prices since the Iran war, travelers are left with few solutions besides avoiding airports until the Iran conflict is resolved, or until TSA can function efficiently.