Trump Transportation Secretary warns of travel disruption as air controllers set to miss paycheck
Significant disruption to air travel is anticipated as the U.S. government shutdown enters its 24th day, with Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warning of impending delays. Air traffic controllers are due to miss their first full paycheck this Tuesday, intensifying concerns over aviation safety.
Some 13,000 air traffic controllers and approximately 50,000 Transportation Security Administration officers are currently working without pay.
“I think as we get closer to Tuesday and then after, I think you’re going to see far more disruption,” Duffy said on Fox News’ America Reports.
The state of air safety is being closely monitored for any signs of worsening delays or cancellations. Such disruptions are viewed as a potential lever to pressure lawmakers into resolving the ongoing political deadlock.
Duffy said at a press conference at Philadelphia Airport that the Federal Aviation Administration’s air traffic controller academy will run out of money within weeks to pay air traffic control students and that a few students had already decided to withdraw or not begin classes.
Airlines are bracing for more disruptions.
Republicans including Duffy blame Democrats for not reopening the government. Democrats say it is President Donald Trump and Republicans who refuse to negotiate over health care subsidies that expire at the end of the year.
Democratic Representative Rick Larsen said Republicans should negotiate. “Controllers should never have to wonder where they will find money to pay their mortgage or put food on the table,” Larsen said.
National Air Traffic Controllers Association President Nick Daniels said at the press conference that controllers are under immense stress and some are taking second jobs to pay their bills.
The shutdown “leads to an unnecessary distraction, and they cannot be 100% focused on their jobs, which makes this system less safe,” Daniels said. “We didn’t start a shutdown. We don’t end the shutdown — our elected officials do. And our message is simple — end the shutdown today.”
About 6.6 percent of flights delayed Thursday were due to air traffic controller absences — slightly above the normal 5 percent — but much lower than the 53 percent seen on prior days during the shutdown, the Transportation Department said.
On Thursday, the FAA said air traffic control staffing issues forced it to delay travel at airports in New York, Washington, Newark and Houston.
In 2019, during a 35-day shutdown, the number of absences by controllers and TSA officers rose as workers missed paychecks, extending wait times at some airport check points. Authorities were forced to slow air traffic in New York and Washington.
The FAA is about 3,500 air traffic controllers short of targeted staffing levels and many had been working mandatory overtime and six-day weeks even before the shutdown.
