Long lines at Austin airport; officials expect record-breaking volume of people

Austin airport travelers once again waiting in long lines

Travelers at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport were once again seen waiting in long lines for security and check-in on Monday, March 16.

AUSTIN, Texas - Travelers at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport were once again seen waiting in long lines for security and check-in.

This comes as SXSW 2026 is still in full swing and spring break is underway.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Long lines continue at Austin airport

FOX 7 Austin's Jessica Rivera says there are a number of reasons for the long lines at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport.

What they're saying:

ABIA said 38,000 passengers flew out of the airport on Monday, March 16. It was a record-breaking volume of people.

Videos showed the long lines at around 4:30 a.m. but as the morning had gone on, the lines were still long, but were not seen out the door.

For Tuesday, March 17, officials said they are expecting around 32,000 passengers.

"This is pretty unusual," said Adam Kelly traveling to San Jose.

"We usually fly out of Pittsburgh, and it's definitely not like this," said Brian Dennison, traveling to West Virginia.

Some travelers dealt with delays.

"We have a layover in St Louis. It's been delayed, but it's due to weather," said Dennison.

Others arrived early just to get through the doors.

"I was reading that the lines have been pretty long, so I got here earlier than normal," said Kelly.

Dig deeper:

The annual festival rush is adding extra pressure for airport staff this year, and it's even more complicated due to a partial government shutdown.

Congress remains deadlocked over funding for the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the Transportation Security Administration.

The TSA is among more than 100,000 federal employees working without pay.

Greg Casar & John Cornyn argue outside Austin airport

Rep. Greg Casar and Sen. John Cornyn argued over DHS funding at the Austin airport.

Senator John Coryn and Congressman Greg Casar clashed over the issue at the airport.

By the numbers:

ABIA says it screened 112,154 people over the weekend.

At last check, according to Flight Aware, there were 228 delays with 59 cancellations at ABIA on Monday.

Airport officials at ABIA said between 6–7 a.m. is the busiest time for departures, and between 3–7 a.m. are the busiest times for TSA.

Long lines at Austin airport due to SXSW 2026

The backstory:

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Long TSA lines at Austin airport

Thousands of travelers at the Austin airport found themselves in a security nightmare Friday morning. Lines wrapped out the door and onto the sidewalks as the start of SXSW clashed with critical staffing shortages at TSA.

It was a similar scene on Friday, March 13, when passenger lines also extended outside the terminal.

Many are not only traveling for SXSW but also spring break, Rodeo Austin and St. Patrick's Day activities.

This year, the annual hustle and bustle of Austin’s festival season is even more stressful for airport workers, as it coincides with a partial government shutdown.

Congress remains deadlocked over funding for the Department of Homeland Security, which oversees the Transportation Security Administration. The TSA is among more than 100,000 federal employees working without pay.

Dig deeper:

The CEOs of major U.S. airlines urged Congress recently to make a deal to ensure that TSA workers and other federal air travel employees will continue getting paid when the government shuts down.

The CEOs of Alaska Air, American Airlines, Atlas, Delta, FedEx, JetBlue, Southwest, United, UPS and Airlines for America wrote an open letter to Congress.

What you can do:

Airport officials are advising passengers to arrive two and a half hours early for domestic flights and three hours early for international travel.

Officials say passengers should expect lines for TSA, airline ticket counters and more.

Make note of the checkpoints that you can use.