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more than 4,000 flights Were There were delays across the US on Monday, as the Federal Aviation Administration We continue to struggle with staff shortages due to the ongoing government shutdown.
A total of 4,445 flights into, into or out of the US were affected as of Monday afternoon, according to the flight-tracking site. flight AwareA total of 67 flights have been cancelled.
came after this FAA announced it air traffic control Delayed due to staffing issues Travel to airports in Dallas, Chicago, Atlanta and New Jersey late Sunday night. More than 20 percent of American Airlines and Southwest Airlines flights were also delayed, according to FlightAware.
The agency said it had received multiple staffing triggers for the Sunday evening shift and that flights in Las Vegas and Phoenix may also be delayed due to the absence of air traffic control.
Most airport issues appear to have been resolved by Monday morning, although a staffing trigger was in effect in Philadelphia, which also affects traffic going into Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey.
About 13,000 air traffic controllers and about 50,000 Transportation Security Administration officers are required to work during the government shutdown, but they are not being paid.
Speaking on Fox & Friends, US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said that many air traffic controllers were now looking for alternative sources of income to “keep their families afloat” while the shutdown – which has now entered its 19th day – continues.
Earlier this month, more than 23,000 flights were delayed in one week, with Duffy attributing more than half (53) percent of delays to staffing issues, compared to 5 percent normally. Despite this he told workers to “come to work” regardless.
Air traffic control has become an issue in the debate over the shutdown and both Republicans and Democrats are blaming each other. Unions and airlines have urged a speedy end to the impasse.
The Trump administration has circulated videos blaming Democrats at some airport security checkpoints, but many airports have refused to play them.
In 2019, during a 35-day shutdown, the number of absences for controllers and TSA officers increased as workers did not receive pay, leading to increased checkpoint wait times at some airports. Authorities were forced to slow air traffic in New York and Washington, putting pressure on lawmakers to quickly end the standoff.