Government shutdown flight delays: Warning more flight cancellations and airport closures to continue this week amid air traffic control staffing shortages
US airports have been hit with widespread flight delays because of a shortage of air traffic controllers, who are working without pay during the federal government shutdown.
A ground stop was issued at Newark Airport on Sunday morning, a major hub servicing New York. Average delays at Newark are more than three hours and could last until Monday, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) says.
Half of the 30 major airports in the US have staff shortages, and Transport Secretary Sean Duffy said flights will be cancelled across national airspace "to make sure people are safe". He added that the government shutdown, now in its sixth week, would continue to cause flight delays, cancellations and closures amid air traffic control staffing shortages across the country.
“We will delay, we will cancel any kind of flights across the national airspace to make sure people are safe,” Duffy warned during an appearance on ABC’s ‘This Week’. The FAA’s real time website shows Boston’s Logan Airport and Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas closed Sunday, ground stops at Chicago’s O’Hare, and major ground delays at LAX in Los Angeles and the San Francisco International Airport.
Duffy warned during his Sunday interview that the situation could deteriorate still further as the shutdown continues. “If the government doesn’t open in the next week or two, we’ll look back as these were the good old days, not the bad days,” he cautioned.
He said the administration is considering “pulling in whatever dollars we can” when asked whether there are other funding sources to pay the costs associated with air traffic control facilities and employees. Nearly 13,000 air traffic controllers are working without pay as the government shutdown enters its second month.
Air traffic controllers, like other essential federal workers, are required to work without pay during the shutdown, including Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents. The aviation agency called on lawmakers to end the shutdown so that workers "receive the pay they've earned and travelers can avoid further disruptions and delays".
The government shutdown began on 1 October. Lawmakers are at an impasse as a Republican-led bill to fund the government has failed to pass the Senate over a dozen times.
In exchange for re-opening the government, Democrats are seeking to extend tax credits that make health insurance cheaper for millions of Americans. They are also calling for a reverse to US President Donald Trump's cuts to Medicaid, a government healthcare programme used by millions of elderly, disabled and low-income people.