For the third consecutive day, US air travel is facing significant disruption due to delays and cancellations. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy sounded the alarm, suggesting that air traffic could soon be “reduced to a trickle” if the government shutdown doesn’t come to an end.
According to FlightAware, approximately 1,400 flights headed to, from, or within the US were cancelled, with an additional 2,700 experiencing delays by Sunday morning. Particularly bad news came from Newark, New Jersey, where passengers are facing average delays exceeding two hours.
In what could be a silver lining, reports indicate that lawmakers are pushing towards a deal to restore government funding and resolve the ongoing shutdown.
The Senate is set to meet on Sunday for a rare weekend session to address the issue.
Duffy stressed that if lawmakers cannot break this deadlock soon, the impact on air travel would become increasingly severe.
“You’re going to see air travel be reduced to a trickle,” he stated in an interview with CNN on Sunday. He expressed concern that travelers aiming to go home for Thanksgiving later this month might face challenges in securing flights.
“Many of them are not going to be able to get on an airplane because there won’t be enough flights if this continues,” he remarked.
Last week, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) revealed plans to scale back air travel capacity by up to 6% this weekend, with a further cut of 10% anticipated by the following weekend at 40 of the highest traffic airports nationwide. Although international flights will not be affected, some airlines might still choose to cancel those too, according to the FAA.
Air traffic controllers, currently unpaid owing to the shutdown, are reportedly fatigued and failing to show up for work, thus contributing to the reductions in air traffic management. Duffy shared that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth proposed the idea of military air traffic controllers stepping in for assistance, but that offer was turned down as they are not certified for civilian airport operations.
Currently, hundreds of thousands of federal employees are going unpaid since the government ran out of funding on October 1st. Likewise, food assistance for low-income Americans is dangling in uncertainty, with authorities only agreeing to disburse half of monthly benefits.
Sunday marked the 40th day of the longest government shutdown in US history, with Republicans and Democrats locked in a standoff over the funding crisis.
Both parties have been blaming each other for the deadlock and ensuing travel disruptions. Democrats have stated they won’t support any Republican spending proposals unless health insurance subsidies are included, while Republicans insist on funding without any strings attached.
This weekend, President Donald Trump suggested that payments be made directly to individuals for purchasing health insurance instead of routing funds to insurance firms.
Meanwhile, Republican senators are reportedly devising a compromise plan aimed at resolving the block, with a legislative vote potentially occurring on Sunday.
