WASHINGTON (AP) — Air traffic in the U.S. could 'slow to a trickle' if the federal government shutdown continues into the busy Thanksgiving travel holiday season, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy cautioned on Sunday.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has ordered flight reductions at the nation’s busiest airports as a growing number of air traffic controllers, many going unpaid for nearly a month, have begun to stop showing up for work.
Starting last Friday, flight reductions commenced at 4%, scaling up to 10% by November 14. This reduction is effective from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. local time, impacting all commercial airlines. On Sunday alone, over 1,700 flights were canceled and nearly 5,000 were delayed, as reported by the aviation tracking site FlightAware, following more than 1,500 cancellations on Saturday. Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta reported the highest number of cancellations at 173, followed closely by Newark Liberty International Airport with 115.
The FAA indicated that staffing shortages at Newark and LaGuardia airports are causing average departure delays of about 75 minutes. While airports like Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport remained mostly empty on Sunday morning, security checkpoints reflected minimal wait times amidst ongoing cancellations and delays.
Duffy warned that should controller pay issues continue, it might necessitate even greater flight cuts, potentially reaching 20%. 'More controllers aren't coming to work day by day, the further they go without a paycheck,' he stated during his appearance on 'Fox News Sunday.'
He is preparing the public for significant disruptions during the upcoming Thanksgiving travel period. Duffy emphasized, 'As we get closer to Thanksgiving travel, air travel could slow to a trickle as families attempt to travel.' He noted critical staffing shortages will lead to only a few flights taking off, resulting in thousands of cancellations.
Complicating matters, the shutdown has prompted many air traffic controllers to consider early retirement, worsening the staffing situation. Duffy mentioned that as many as 15 to 20 controllers are retiring daily, a decision accelerated by the shutdown.
While there were discussions about deploying military air traffic controllers to alleviate shortages, it is unclear if they are certified for civilian air traffic control systems. Duffy pushed back on accusations that flight cancellations are being used as a political tactic, asserting that safety concerns necessitated the operational changes.
In the past few weeks since the shutdown commenced, air traffic control-related delays have surged, negatively impacting over 4 million passengers across U.S. carriers, according to Airlines for America, a trade group for U.S. carriers.
