Aviation passengers can anticipate worsening cancellations and extended wait times throughout this week, even if the government shutdown concludes. This is due to the Federal Aviation Administration's decision to implement more significant reductions in air traffic at 40 prominent American airports. Officials stated Monday regarding airports.
TL;DR
- President Trump proposes $10,000 bonuses for air traffic controllers who worked during the shutdown.
- Widespread flight cancellations and delays are expected to worsen due to FAA air traffic reductions.
- Air traffic controllers are missing work due to stress and the need for additional employment.
- The union head states controllers are being used as a "political pawn" in the shutdown dispute.
On the fourth day of flight restrictions, airlines canceled more than 2,100 flights Monday, following the cancellation of 5,500 flights from Friday through Sunday. Air traffic controllers, who haven't been paid for over a month, have begun to miss work due to increased stress and the necessity of finding additional employment.
President Donald Trump pressured controllers Monday on social media to “get back to work, NOW!!!” He said he wants a $10,000 bonus for controllers who’ve stayed on the job and to dock the pay of those who didn’t.
The head of the controllers union said they’re being used as a “political pawn” in the fight over the shutdown.
Controller staffing issues, coupled with wintry weather, resulted in four-hour delays at Chicago O’Hare International Airport on Monday, as the FAA cautioned that insufficient personnel at over a dozen towers and control centers might lead to Disruptions in cities such as Philadelphia, Nashville, and Atlanta.
The Senate was approaching a vote on Monday to terminate the shutdown, though it would still require House approval and final passage might take several more days. Last week, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy made clear stated that flight reductions will persist until the FAA observes enhancements in safety metrics.
Airlines grounded thousands of flights over the weekend, adhering to the directive to reduce their flight schedules by 4% at 40 of the nation’s busiest airports. The FAA reports that this figure will climb to 6% on Tuesday and reach 10% by the close of the week.
Already, travelers are growing angry.
“All of this has real negative consequences for millions of Americans, and it’s 100% unnecessary and avoidable,” said Todd Walker, whose flight from San Francisco to Washington state was canceled over the weekend, Which meant he couldn't attend his mother's 80th birthday celebration.
On Sunday, approximately 10% of all flights across the country were canceled, marking the fourth-worst day for cancellations in nearly two years, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium.
The FAA broadened flight limitations on Monday, prohibiting business jets and numerous private flights from utilizing a dozen airports that already have commercial flight restrictions.
Since the shutdown commenced, airports across the country have experienced sporadic delays, as the FAA reduces air traffic volume due to a shortage of controllers, thereby guaranteeing flight safety.
Nick Daniels, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, stated that the shutdown has intensified the already demanding roles of controllers, resulting in exhaustion and heightened dangers.
“This is the erosion of the safety margin the flying public never sees, but America relies on every single day,” the union chief said at a news conference Monday.
Daniels stated that some controllers lack the funds for childcare, preventing them from working, while others are taking on second jobs as delivery drivers or even selling plasma to cover their expenses. The number who are retiring or quitting is “growing by the day,” he said.
Over the six weekends that have passed since the shutdown commenced, an average of 30 air traffic control facilities experienced staffing shortages. That’s almost four times the number on weekends this year before the shutdown, according to an Associated Press analysis of operations plans sent through the Air Traffic Control System Command Center system.
This Tuesday marks the second time controllers and other FAA personnel will not receive their paychecks. It’s unclear how quickly they might be paid once the shutdown ends — it took more than two months to receive full back pay in 2019, Daniels said.
The shutdown and money worries have become regular “dinnertime conversations” for Amy Lark and her husband, both air traffic controllers in the Washington, D.C. Area.
“Yesterday, my kids asked me how long we could stay in our house,” Lark said. Still, she said controllers remain “100% committed.”
The government has struggled for years with a shortage of controllers, and Duffy said the shutdown has worsened the problem. Before the shutdown, the transportation secretary had been working to hire more controllers, speed up training and offer retention bonuses.
Duffy warned over the weekend that if the shutdown drags on, air travel may “be reduced to a trickle” by Thanksgiving week.
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Yamat reported from Las Vegas and Funk from Omaha, Nebraska. Associated Press writers Ken Sweet, Wyatte Grantham-Philips and Michael R. Sisak in New York, Stephen Groves and Kevin Freking in Washington, and John Seewer in Toledo, Ohio, contributed to this report.