The CEO of Delta, the world’s largest airline by market cap, said he and his company are “outraged” TSA agents continue to work without pay as the partial government shutdown drags into its fifth week.
CEO Ed Bastian, in an interview with CNBC Tuesday, specifically called out representatives in Washington, D.C., telling them to “do their job.”
“It’s inexcusable that our security agents, our frontline agents, that are essential to what we do, are not being paid, and it’s ridiculous to see them being used as political chips,” he said.
Thanks in part to staffing issues, airlines canceled more than 1,000 flights Tuesday and delayed 4,200 others, PBS News reported citing flight-tracking website FlightAware. Long security lines also accumulated at major U.S. airports such as Delta’s main hub Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson airport, where travelers were encouraged to arrive three hours before their scheduled departure time, CBS reported. The TSA disruption has added to airport chaos spurred by the Iran war and severe storms in the past week.
Bastian’s comments come as he joined the CEOs of other U.S. airlines including American, Southwest, and JetBlue, in signing a public letter asking Congress “to move forward on bipartisan proposals” that will pay TSA agents, as well as U.S. customs clearing officers, and air traffic controllers. The letter cited a poll by data-science company AlphaROC earlier in March, which found 93% of Americans support paying agents from the Transportation Security Agency who ensure airport security during shutdowns.
