US Tourism Industry Warns DHS of Airport Chaos Risk: What It Means for Travelers

Airlines, airports, hotels, and US tourism organizations have urged the Department of Homeland Security not to reduce Customs and Border Protection operations at major international airports. While this is not a new rule and no flight cancellations have been announced, the fact of a public warning makes this topic important for everyone planning trips to the US, transit through American hubs, or travel during the busy summer season of 2026.

On May 29, 2026, Airlines for America published a joint statement on behalf of groups representing airlines, airports, the hotel business, and other tourism and consumer interests. In it, the industry addressed the Department of Homeland Security requesting to avoid actions that would significantly reduce CBP operations at US airport ports of entry. The essence of the warning is simple: an international airport cannot normally receive international flights if there is no one to process passengers and baggage at the border.

This issue arose after statements by Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin, who in May repeated the idea of limiting or stopping the processing of international flights in cities that the US administration calls "sanctuary cities". According to reports from Travel Weekly and Associated Press, this is currently a threat and planning, not a decision already implemented. Mullin himself also noted that actions have not begun. However, for the tourism market, even such a scenario is significant because international air travel operates on long schedules, and passenger trust in a route is often formed long before the departure date.

What Exactly Caused the Concern

CBP is responsible for border and customs clearance of international passengers in the US. For a traveler, this means passport control, entry right verification, baggage control, and all procedures without which a flight from abroad cannot simply "unload" people in the terminal. If such operations are reduced in one large hub, the effect will not be limited to only the city where the airport is located. Passengers flying through New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Seattle, or San Francisco often proceed further to other states, use domestic connections or return home via the nearest large international hub.

In the joint industry statement, it is emphasized that disrupting the operation of major international gateway airports will have consequences across the entire country: for passengers, business, supply chains, and the airports themselves. Travel Weekly separately cites an assessment by the U.S. Travel Association regarding Newark: millions of Americans return from abroad through this airport every year, and the loss of international visitors through Newark Liberty could cost the US economy billions of dollars per year.

That is why the industry is talking not only about inconveniences in the passport control queue. The potential risk is broader: flight cancellations, rerouting, lack of alternative capacity in other airports, disrupted connections and decreased confidence of international tourists that a trip to the US will go as planned.

Which Airports May Be in the Focus Area

Mullin did not name a final list of airports in the mentioned interview. Industry publications, referring to previous government lists of jurisdictions that the administration considers "sanctuary", mention several large international hubs: New York, Newark, Chicago, Boston, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Seattle, and San Francisco. For passengers, this does not mean that flights to these cities are already at risk of cancellation, but these destinations should be monitored more closely if the discussion moves from political statements to real operational changes.

For Ukrainian and European travelers, the hubs of the New York region are particularly important. If you plan to arrive via JFK Airport or Newark Liberty Airport, it is advisable to allow more time for further connections, follow airline notifications and check the JFK online board or EWR online board closer to the travel date. Similar logic applies to passengers flying through Los Angeles LAX, Chicago O'Hare, San Francisco SFO or Seattle-Tacoma SEA.

Why This Is Important Right Now

The summer of 2026 is special for the US. The country is preparing for a large wave of international trips related to the FIFA World Cup 2026, as well as the traditional peak of vacations, family trips, and business trips. In such a situation, even uncertainty around border processing can affect tourist behavior: some travelers may choose other routes, avoid complex connections or postpone bookings until more clarity emerges.

For airlines, the problem is even more complex. An international flight cannot be painlessly moved from one city to another if there are not enough slots, gates, crews, ground staff, hotels for transit passengers, and customs-border infrastructure. Large hubs were built over years specifically as nodes through which flows from Europe, Asia, Latin America, and the US domestic market pass. If one of these nodes loses normal international processing, it affects the entire network.

Tourist cities also depend on this mechanism. A foreign visitor arriving in New York may then travel to Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Connecticut or make a domestic connection. A passenger arriving at LAX does not always stay in Los Angeles: they may head to the California coast, Las Vegas, Hawaii, or Mexico. Therefore, the industry insists that airports are not just local infrastructure, but national gateways for tourism, business, and logistics.

What This Means for Passengers

The most important practical conclusion: as of early June 2026, passengers do not need to mass-cancel trips to the US because of this news. There is no announced decision to stop international processing at a specific airport, no official list of flights that must be rerouted, and no published schedule of changes. But travelers should consider the political and operational risk, especially if the route is complex, the ticket is non-refundable, or the trip is tied to a match, cruise, conference, or family event.

For international passengers, it is appropriate to take several practical steps:

• check flight status and airline notifications a few days before departure and on the day of travel;
• avoid overly short connections after arriving in the US, especially if passport control and baggage drop-off for the next flight are required;
• evaluate alternative routes through other hubs, but do not restructure the entire trip without a real operational notification from the airline;
• for expensive or strictly tied trips, choose fares with more flexible change conditions;
• follow official notifications from DHS, CBP, airlines, and airports, rather than just political statements.

If you already have a ticket to one of the large international hubs, the smartest strategy now is not panic, but control of details. Check if your fare allows changes, how much time is allocated between the international and domestic segments, whether you need to collect baggage, and if there is a hotel option near the airport in case of delay. For such scenarios, pages with hotels near airports may be useful, such as near JFK, LAX or ORD.

What Not to Overstate

In this story, it is easy to move from fact to dramatic forecast. The fact is that DHS received a public warning from key participants of the tourism market, and the Secretary of Homeland Security indeed spoke about preparing plans. But as of June 2, 2026, there is no confirmation that CBP operations have already been reduced at a specific airport due to this dispute. Therefore, the correct assessment for a traveler is: the risk should be monitored, but it is not yet an active travel restriction.

Also, it is important to distinguish between international arrivals and domestic flights. CBP is needed specifically for the border processing of passengers arriving from abroad. Domestic flights between US cities operate on a different logic and do not go through the same customs-border process. However, if the international segment is disrupted, it could affect domestic connections, as the passenger may not make the next flight or the airline may be forced to restructure part of the schedule.

Conclusion

The warning from the US tourism industry to DHS is a signal not of immediate airport closures, but of the vulnerability of international travel to political and administrative decisions. For the tourism market, this topic is important precisely because large US airports operate as a national system: New York, Newark, Los Angeles, Chicago, Seattle, San Francisco, Boston, and Philadelphia serve not only their cities, but millions of passengers who travel further.

Travelers should remain calm but attentive. If the decision is not implemented, trips will continue as usual. If DHS proceeds with real reductions in CBP operations, the first signs will be official notifications from airlines, airports, and border services, schedule changes, and warnings for passengers. These sources should be the primary guides before flying to the US or transiting through American international hubs.

Material prepared based on the statement of Airlines for America from May 29, 2026, publications of Travel Weekly from May 27 and 29, 2026, and the Associated Press report on the tourism industry's reaction to the possible reduction of CBP operations at international airports in the US.