ICE at IAH and Hobby: Federal agents began reviewing identifications at the security screening checkpoints of Houston’s two airports. At Bush Airport, wait times rose again to four hours this Friday, while Hobby operated with much shorter times.
Security operations at Houston’s airports tightened again on Friday morning. Federal immigration agents were seen reviewing identifications at the security checkpoints of George Bush Intercontinental Airport and William P. Hobby Airport, on a day marked once again by long lines at IAH.
According to the Houston Airport System, Bush logged waits of up to four hours in Terminal A South and three and a half hours in Terminal E during Friday morning. At Hobby, by contrast, times remained under 16 minutes.
Airport authorities also anticipated that passenger volume would remain high. That forecast aligned with a new round of operational adjustments at Bush, where pressure on the security screening lines had been building for days.
Bush Airport Again Concentrated the Severest Delays
The difference between the two airports was clear from early on. While Hobby showed contained times, Bush again absorbed the majority of the congestion in Houston.
Added to passenger pressure was another factor: TSA PreCheck and CLEAR were not available on Friday, according to an update released Thursday night by the Houston Airport System. That left fewer options to speed up security screening at an airport already dealing with considerable delays.
The result was a difficult morning for those departing from IAH, especially in Terminal A South and E, which appeared with the highest times in the system.
Houston Received 32 Additional TSA Officers at Bush
To try to ease operations, the Houston Airport System said that 32 TSA National Deployment Officers were assigned to Bush Airport this Friday.
The deployment’s aim is to reinforce security operations and open additional screening lanes. That help arrives at a moment when Bush faces a tough combination: high passenger traffic, reduced services, and understaffing.
However, the reinforcement did not prevent lines from starting the day at extreme levels. By Friday morning, wait times remained among the highest reported at the airport during this new contingency phase.
ICE Agents Began Supporting Screenings After Training
The presence of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents at airports did not begin this Friday. According to the Department of Homeland Security, those agents were sent to terminals nationwide since Monday to support TSA operations, including Bush and Hobby, two airports that recorded among the highest absence rates within the system.
After receiving TSA training, ICE agents began on Thursday to review identifications and to use agency equipment at airports. That step marked the formal start of their participation in the security screening process.
In Houston, that assistance was already visible at the two airports on Friday morning. The change does not replace the TSA, but it does modify who is taking part in the operational work at the checkpoints.
Partial Government Shutdown Continues to Hit Federal Operations
The tension at the airports unfolds amid the partial federal government shutdown, begun on February 14 after Congress failed to reach an agreement to fund the Department of Homeland Security.
That department oversees both airport security and immigration control operations. Therefore, the budget gridlock has affected two parts of the same system: TSA screening and the federal apparatus now trying to sustain them with extra support.
In Washington, the Senate approved funds in the early hours to pay TSA workers and other agencies, though not immigration control operations. The House was set to review that package this Friday.
Also Thursday night, President Donald Trump said he would sign an executive order directing DHS to pay TSA agents. By Friday morning it was not clear when that directive might reflect in wait times in Houston.
ICE at IAH and Hobby: The Operation Shifts, But the Lines Continue to Define Friday in Houston
Friday’s picture shows two distinct scenes in the city. At Hobby, wait times remained relatively low despite the new screening scheme. At Bush, the bottleneck again dominated passenger departures, even with additional reinforcements and with ICE agents already participating in reviewing identifications.
Airport authorities did not report during the morning when wait times at IAH might normalize or how much the arrival of more staff or the possible release of federal funds would help.
Meanwhile, the traveler experience remained dependent on the airport, terminal, and time of day. In Houston, Friday began with two realities: Hobby operating with limited delays and Bush once again stuck in queues of several hours.
