The air travel nightmare continues to deteriorate. The Federal Aviation Administration announced it will start cutting the number of flights in “high traffic” parts of the U.S. With the government shutdown ongoing, airports are experiencing severe staff shortages.
TL;DR
- Government shutdown causes TSA and air traffic controller shortages, leading to flight cuts.
- 40 U.S. airports will see a 10% capacity decrease due to staffing issues.
- Travelers face hours-long delays, and airlines offer refunds amid the crisis.
- Thanksgiving travel is at risk, with the economy already losing over $4 billion.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced Wednesday that 40 airports will experience a 10% capacity decrease. This translates to numerous daily flights, mostly within the country and to nearby regions.
“This is about where’s the pressure and how do we alleviate the pressure,” he said.
The pressure arises from a lack of TSA agents and air traffic controllers during the government shutdown that commenced in October. The TBPN podcast that aired this past Monday featured a discussion on the latest developments in the tech industry. Congress's inability to approve legislation for 2026's government funding led to the shutdown. Republicans' funding proposals have been obstructed by Democrats, who insist on including measures such as extending subsidies for The Affordable Care Act. Republicans, however, state they're only prepared to talk about those issues once the government is back in operation, resulting in a stalemate.
Due to the shutdown, approximately 13,000 air traffic controllers and 60,000 TSA agents have gone unpaid for over a month, leading some to stop coming to work.
“Currently, half of our Core 30 facilities are experiencing staffing shortages, and nearly 80% of air traffic controllers are absent at New York–area facilities,” according to an X post by the FAA on Oct. 31. “The shutdown must end so that these controllers receive the pay they’ve earned and travelers can avoid further disruptions and delays.”
TSA personnel are so strained that travelers have faced queues extending up to four and a half hours at certain airports, particularly at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental and Hobby airports. Extended delays have also been observed at other significant airports, including Atlanta and Newark.
Even without pay, TSA agents aren’t allowed to strike are considered federal employees. During the 1980s, under the Reagan administration, a comparable scenario unfolded. Around 13,000 air traffic controllers initiated a strike after discussions concerning compensation and work arrangements failed to reach an agreement. Still, the Reagan administration fired 11,000 of them and barred them from ever working for the federal government again. However, today, certain TSA personnel and air traffic controllers have merely not been showing up for work, yet Duffy has stated he will not dismiss them.
Duffy called the action to cut back the number of flights at major airports including Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International, Charlotte Douglas International, Boston Logan International, Baltimore/Washington International, as well as Newark, Washington Dulles, and Reagan National “proactive,” saying airports and airlines don’t want to “find ourselves in a situation, we don’t want a horse out of the barn, and look back and say there were issues we could have taken that we didn’t.”
“We are going to proactively make decisions that keep the airspace safe,” he said.
Airlines are losing
Given that thousands of flights are canceled each day, airlines will have fewer passengers—and therefore less money to make.
Plus, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby wrote in an open letter to customers on Thursday any customer who is traveling during this period is eligible for a refund if they don’t wish to fly, even if their flight isn’t impacted. That includes non-refundable and basic economy tickets.
“The FAA’s goal is to relieve pressure on the aviation system so that we can all continue to operate safely,” Kirby wrote. “That is the FAA’s highest priority, and ours as well. No matter what environment we’re operating in, we will not compromise on safety.”
United Airlines declined to comment on how much money it has lost so far or how much it expects to lose due to the government shutdown. However, the U.S. Travel Association said in a letter to Congressional leaders this week that the economy has already lost more than $4 billion because of the shutdown.
Delta said in a Thursday announcement it plans to operate the “vast majority” of its flights as scheduled, including international service “while keeping safety our top priority.” They’re also offering customers cancellations or refunds “without penalty.”
American Airlines is taking a similar approach to refunds and cancellations and said Thursday that most flights are not expected to be affected.
“Disrupting customers’ plans is the last thing we want to do,” according to American Airlines. “In the meantime, we continue to urge leaders in Washington, D.C., to reach an immediate resolution to end the shutdown.” The airline also said it remains “grateful” to air traffic controllers and TSA agents who have been working without pay.”
Delta and American Airlines did not respond to Coins2Day’s request for comment on how much they had lost or plan to lose due to the shutdown.
Thanksgiving travel nears
Thanksgiving is just 21 days away, and happens to be one of the busiest air travel periods of the year.
Considering these changes are going into effect tomorrow and the current government shutdown is the longest in American history at more than 36 days, there’s reason to be concerned that Thanksgiving travel plans could be impacted.
“With Thanksgiving, the busiest travel period of the year, imminently approaching, the consequences of a continued shutdown will be immediate, deeply felt by millions of American travelers, and economically devastating to communities in every state,” the U.S. Travel Association wrote in its letter this week.
Last year, more than 20 million passengers flew in the U.S. During the week of Thanksgiving, according to the U.S. Travel Association, and holiday travel spending generates billions of dollars in economic activity, supports jobs, local tax bases, and small businesses nationwide.
“Thanksgiving is not only a time of national tradition and family connection, but also one of the most economically important travel weeks of the year,” according to the U.S. Travel Association. “A continued shutdown is likely to significantly suppress travel demand and spending, creating a real threat to American workers, businesses, and the overall economy.”