Air travelers across the United States are facing a grim outlook as the ongoing federal shutdown continues to cripple the aviation system, leaving airports overwhelmed and airlines slashing flights. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned on Sunday that air travel could soon grind nearly to a halt as the crisis deepens.
“It’s only going to get worse… the two weeks before Thanksgiving, you’re going to see air travel be reduced to a trickle,” Duffy said on CNN’s State of the Union.
With Thanksgiving — one of America’s busiest travel seasons — approaching on November 27, millions of travelers could be stranded. “Many of them are not going to be able to get on an airplane, because there are not going to be that many flights that fly if this thing doesn’t open back up,” Duffy cautioned.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ordered airlines to trim daily schedules by 4% at 40 major airports starting Friday, citing mounting safety risks due to staff shortages. The agency plans to escalate those cuts to 6% on Tuesday and 10% by November 14.
By Sunday morning, the situation had worsened dramatically. As of 10:30 a.m. ET, over 1,400 flights were canceled and 2,700 delayed. The FAA confirmed staffing shortages at a dozen air traffic control towers, further compounding the chaos.
Duffy explained that retirements among controllers have surged since the shutdown began on October 1. “I paid experienced controllers to stay on the job and not retire,” he said. “I used to have about four controllers retire a day before the shutdown, … now up to 15 to 20 a day are retiring.”
The FAA now faces a shortage of between 1,000 and 2,000 air traffic controllers, a crisis that has left the agency scrambling. Airlines are reeling from the cascading effects: on Saturday alone, 1,550 flights were canceled and 6,700 delayed, up from Friday’s 1,025 cancellations and 7,000 delays.
Behind the scenes, airline executives are panicking. Several officials privately admitted that the proliferation of delay programs has made it “nearly impossible” to schedule and manage flights. Many expressed fears that the system could collapse entirely if the staffing situation deteriorates further.
Economists are warning that the damage could extend beyond airports. White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said the travel disruptions could dent national growth. “Thanksgiving time is one of the hottest times of the year for the economy… and if people aren’t traveling at that moment, then we really could be looking at a negative quarter for the fourth quarter,” he said on CBS’s Face the Nation.
According to Airlines for America, which represents major U.S. carriers, the crisis has already upended travel plans for more than 4 million passengers since the shutdown began. The group estimates that by next Friday, the economic toll could range from $285 million to $580 million each day.
The flight reductions have hit the nation’s largest airlines especially hard — about 700 canceled flights came from American, Delta, Southwest, and United combined. Meanwhile, 13,000 air traffic controllers and 50,000 airport screeners continue to work without pay.
Duffy previously warned that if more controllers walk off the job, he may be forced to order an even steeper reduction — up to 20% of total air traffic.
Adding to safety concerns, Senator Ted Cruz revealed that pilots have reported a troubling rise in errors by fatigued air traffic controllers. “Since the shutdown started, pilots have filed more than 500 safety reports about mistakes made by air traffic controllers because of fatigue,” Cruz said, citing FAA data.
As the shutdown drags into its 40th day — the longest in U.S. history — the aviation industry faces a nightmare scenario: fewer flights, exhausted workers, frustrated travelers, and a looming economic hit that could ripple far beyond the skies.
{Matzav.com}
