The government shutdown has not had a “significant impact” on Delta Air Line’s operations, CEO Ed Bastian told Brad Smith in an interview on CNN Headline Express.
There were barely any flight cancellations the first week of October, with Delta completing nearly 100% of its flight schedule, Bastian said. Delays were also infrequent, with the airline running on-time for 90% of flights.
There have been “anecdotal” reports of sick-outs and issues in some areas, he noted.
If the government shutdown continues for another week to 10 days — at which point government workers will have missed a paycheck — the airline would be more concerned.
The Internal Revenue Service is furloughing more than 34,400 out of its 74,300 employees yesterday, the agency said in an updated shutdown contingency plan.
Initially, the IRS said that essentially its entire workforce would remain on the job thanks to funding from the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act. But it noted in its original contingency plan that that staffing would be in place only for the first five business days.
Its updated plan indicates it could be updated after five days to address “additional challenges” but also notes that the new staffing levels will be in effect through April.
The IRS is currently in the midst of putting into place dozens of tax law changes contained in the Republicans’ One Big Beautiful Bill Act, including some that take effect this year.
Among the significant activities that will cease are taxpayers services, such as responding to taxpayer questions, and non-automated collections.