🔗 Share this article

Travelers across the United States are preparing for increasing disruptions as airport staffing shortages continue to worsen during the current government closure, now entering its seventh day.

Growing Concerns Over Air Travel Network

Labor leaders for flight controllers and security screeners have cautioned that the circumstances is likely to deteriorate, with staffing challenges reported at multiple key airports including facilities in Nashville, Boston, Dallas, Chicago and Philadelphia.

"The risk of wider impacts to the American air travel network continues to increase by the day," stated aviation expert Henry Harteveldt.

He voiced serious worry that should the closure persist, it could possibly interfere with millions of Americans' holiday travel arrangements in November.

Travel Disruptions and Operational Issues

Staffing shortages, featuring an elevated number of employees calling in sick, affected key facilities around Denver, Los Angeles and New York on Monday, resulting in delays for over 6,000 flights across the country.

• The Burbank facility's flight control was briefly shut down and operations were handled by another facility
• Nashville airport reported delays of approximately two hours due to workforce challenges
• O'Hare Airport in Chicago recorded average delays of 41 minutes
• The DFW airport had delays logged at 30 minutes

Sector Reaction and Union Position

The National Air Traffic Controllers Association emphasized that it does not support any coordinated activities that could negatively affect the National Airspace System.

The union clarified that air traffic controllers take their responsibility to ensure passenger security extremely earnestly and engaging in any job action could result in termination of employment.

Government Perspective

The Transportation Department head Sean Duffy alerted that the country's air traffic control system is suffering damage from the continuing federal closure.

"They're not just thinking about the flight paths," he remarked regarding air traffic controllers who are not receiving salaries. "They're thinking about, 'Am I going to get a paycheck'?"

He noted that many operators depend on regular income and cannot afford prolonged durations without payment.

Broader Implications

According to emergency preparations, roughly 25% of the workforce, or more than 11,000 aviation administration workers, were furloughed when the closure started last week.

Nevertheless, 13,000 air traffic controllers remain on duty, with recruitment and instruction continuing as well.

Union president Nick Daniels indicated that the closure has highlighted existing challenges encountered by air traffic controllers, including staff shortages and aging technology.

He explained that the situation is especially serious at regional facilities where reduced personnel creates additional challenges.

Regardless of the widespread delays, aviation analytics showed that approximately 92% of departures from American airports departed as scheduled as of Tuesday afternoon.

The Federal Aviation Administration had not issued a "workforce threshold" that would decrease the flight volume in and out of airports, indicating that activities were continuing despite the challenges.