WASHINGTON: The turmoil in air travel deepened with more than 4,300 flights delayed nationwide on Monday, following more than 8,800 delays on Sunday, and air traffic controller absences increased as the federal government shutdown reached its 27th day.
The Federal Aviation Administration cited staffing shortages affecting flights across the Southeast and at Newark Airport in New Jersey, while the agency imposed a ground stop at the Austin airport in Texas and a ground delay program at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport that delayed flights by an average of 18 minutes.
Southwest Airlines LUV.N had 47%, or 2,089, of its flights delayed on Sunday, while American Airlines AAL.O had 1,277, or 36%, of its flights delayed, according to FlightAware, a flight tracking website. United Airlines UAL.O had 27%, or 807, of its flights delayed and Delta Air Lines DAL.N had 21%, or 725, of its flights delayed.
Approximately 13,000 air traffic controllers and 50,000 Transportation Security Administration officials must work without pay. The Trump administration has warned that flight disruptions will increase as controllers miss their first full paycheck on Tuesday.
On Monday, Southwest had 24% of flights delayed, American 18% and Delta 13% as of 5:00 p.m. ET (2100 GMT), according to FlightAware.
A U.S. Department of Transportation official said 44% of Sunday’s delays were due to driver absences, a sharp increase from the usual 5%.
The mounting delays and cancellations are fueling public frustration and intensifying scrutiny over the impact of the shutdown, increasing pressure on lawmakers to resolve the budget impasse.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy was in Cleveland meeting with controllers on Monday, while the National Air Traffic Controllers Association union plans events at numerous airports on Tuesday to highlight the first missed paycheck.
The FAA is about 3,500 air traffic controllers short of projected staffing levels, and many had been working mandatory overtime and six-day weeks even before the shutdown.
In 2019, during a 35-day shutdown, the number of TSA screener and agent absences increased as workers did not receive their paychecks, extending wait times at some airport checkpoints. Authorities were forced to reduce the speed of air traffic in New York and Washington.
