(Reuters) – U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said on Tuesday that air traffic controller absences were continuing to snarl flights as they missed their first full paycheck and a government shutdown hit its 28th day.
Staffing shortages during the government shutdown have repeatedly disrupted the aviation industry, with nearly 7,000 flights delayed on Monday and 8,800 on Sunday. As of noon ET (1600 GMT), 1,800 flights were delayed, according to FlightAware, a flight-tracking website.
Duffy said 44% of staffing issues on Sunday were caused by air traffic controller absences and 24% on Monday, compared to 5% on average before the shutdown.
Duffy was speaking at a press conference at New York’s LaGuardia Airport, flanked by air traffic controllers and the president of their union, the latest in a series of appearances at airports during the shutdown aimed at prodding Democrats to give up opposition to the Republican-proposed government funding bill.
He said it remains safe to fly, and if controllers are not at work at certain towers, the Federal Aviation Administration slows flights. “Our number one priority is safety,” Duffy said.
Duffy said the department had not been able to find funding to pay controllers and urged Democrats to vote to open the government. Democrats say Republicans refuse to negotiate and are responsible for the continued shutdown.
“Don’t hold our skies hostage,” Duffy said. “There is not a lot of leeway we have to get people paid.”
CONTROLLERS WORKING SECOND JOBS
Hundreds of U.S. air traffic controllers have taken temporary second jobs, adding pressure to a strained aviation safety system, National Air Traffic Controllers Association President Nick Daniels said on Tuesday.
The number of controllers working second jobs is set to rise as they look for ways to pay their bills, Daniels told reporters at Reagan Washington National Airport.
“It’s quickly going to be 1,000,” Daniels said, urging the government to end the standoff. “We want the shutdown to end today… Whatever way that it gets done, that’s what the American people deserve.”
The FAA is about 3,500 air traffic controllers short of targeted staffing levels, with many already working mandatory overtime and six-day weeks even before the shutdown.
Roughly 13,000 air traffic controllers and 50,000 Transportation Security Administration officers must work without pay after a budget impasse between Republican President Donald Trump and congressional Democrats triggered the shutdown.
Duffy has said controllers are getting jobs delivering food or driving for Uber to make ends meet.
Daniels said the lack of pay was a dangerous distraction and that “every day that this shutdown drags on, the system becomes less safe.”
DELAYS ADD PRESSURE ON LAWMAKERS
Southwest Airlines (LUV.N), opens new tab had 34% of its flights delayed on Monday, while American Airlines (AAL.O), opens new tab had 29%, according to FlightAware. For United Airlines (UAL.O), opens new tab, 19% of its flights were delayed with 22% for Delta Air Lines (DAL.N), opens new tab.
The delays and cancellations have frustrated the public and intensified scrutiny of the shutdown’s impact, raising pressure on lawmakers to resolve it.
In 2019, during a 35-day shutdown, the number of absences by air traffic controllers and TSA officers rose as workers missed paychecks, extending wait times at some airport checkpoints. Authorities were forced to slow air traffic in New York and Washington and the flight disruptions were credited with prompting the government to end the shutdown.
