Copyright Staten Island Advance
Air travelers should expect worsening cancellations and delays this week even if the government shutdown ends, as the Federal Aviation Administration rolls out deeper cuts to flights at 40 major U.S. airports, officials said Monday. The fourth day of the flight restrictions saw airlines scrap over 2,200 flights Monday after cancelling 5,500 from Friday to Sunday. Unpaid for more than a month, some air traffic controllers have stopped showing up, citing the added stress and need to take on second jobs. 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 suggested docking pay for those who haven’t. The head of the controllers union said they’re being used as a “political pawn” in the fight over the shutdown. The Senate on Monday was nearing a vote to end the shutdown although it would still need to clear the House and final passage could still be days away. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy made clear last week that flight cuts will remain until the FAA sees safety metrics improve. And because the flight disruptions are widespread and ongoing, many planes aren’t where they’re supposed to be, which could also slow the airlines’ return to normal operations even after the FAA lifts its order, said Mike Taylor, who leads research into airports and airlines at J.D. Power. “If you think about it, there’s all these aircraft that didn’t fly where they were supposed to on a normal route,” Taylor said. That means airlines will need to track down all their planes once the restrictions are lifted and figure out where each one needs to be to stick to their schedules. After that, Taylor said, “you actually need pilots to fly it, and then you have to get a crew on that plane, and then you need customers willing to pay for that flight.” Over the weekend, airlines canceled thousands of flights to comply with the order to drop 4% of flights at 40 of the nation’s busiest airports. That will rise to 6% on Tuesday and 10% by week’s end, the FAA says. One out of every 10 flights nationwide were scratched Sunday — the fourth worst day for cancellations in almost two years, according aviation analytics firm Cirium. Controller shortages combined with wintry weather also led to four-hour delays at Chicago O’Hare International Airport on Monday, with the FAA warning that staffing at more than a dozen towers and control centers could cause disruptions in cities including Philadelphia, Nashville and Atlanta. 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, causing him to miss his mom’s 80th birthday party. The FAA expanded flight restrictions Monday, barring business jets and many private flights from using a dozen airports already under commercial flight limits. Airports nationwide have seen intermittent delays since the shutdown began because the FAA slows air traffic when it’s short on controllers to ensure flights remain safe. The shutdown has made controllers’ demanding jobs even more stressful, leading to fatigue and increased risks, said Nick Daniels, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association. He said the number who are retiring or quitting is “growing by the day. During the six weekends since the shutdown began, the average number of 30 air traffic control facilities had staffing issues. 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. Tuesday will be the second missed payday for controllers and other FAA employees. It’s unclear how quickly they might be paid once the shutdown ends — it took more than two months to receive full back pay after the 35-day shutdown that ended in 2019, Daniels said. The latest 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.”
