3 weeks ago
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WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. airlines canceled much than 2,700 flights connected Sunday arsenic Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned that aerial postulation crossed the federation would “slow to a trickle” if the national authorities shutdown lingered into the engaged Thanksgiving question vacation season.
The slowdown astatine 40 of the nation’s busiest airports began to origin much wide disruptions successful its 3rd day. The FAA past week ordered formation cuts astatine the nation’s busiest airports arsenic immoderate aerial postulation controllers, who person gone unpaid for astir a month, person stopped showing up for work.
In addition, astir 10,000 formation delays were reported connected Sunday alone, according to FlightAware, a website that tracks aerial question disruptions. More than 1,000 flights were canceled Friday, and much than 1,500 connected Saturday.
The FAA reductions started Friday astatine 4% and were acceptable to summation to 10% by Nov. 14. They are successful effect from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. section clip and volition interaction each commercialized airlines.
Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport successful Atlanta stood to person the astir cancellations Sunday, followed by Chicago O'Hare International, wherever wintry upwind threatened. In Georgia, upwind could besides beryllium a factor, with the National Weather Service bureau successful Atlanta informing of wide freezing conditions done Tuesday.
Traveler Kyra March yet arrived astatine Hartsfield-Jackson connected Sunday aft a bid of postponements the time before.
“I was coming from Tampa and that formation got delayed, delayed, delayed. Then it was canceled and past rebooked. And truthful I had to enactment astatine a edifice and past came backmost this morning," she said.
The FAA said staffing shortages astatine Newark and LaGuardia Airport successful New York were starring to mean departure delays of astir 75 minutes.
Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport successful Michigan was mostly bare Sunday morning, with minimal hold times astatine information checkpoints arsenic delays and cancellations filled the departures and arrivals boards.
Earlier Sunday, Duffy warned that U.S. aerial postulation could diminution importantly if the shutdown persisted. He said further formation cuts — possibly up to 20% — mightiness beryllium needed, peculiarly if controllers person nary wage for a 2nd consecutive wage period.
“More controllers aren’t coming to enactment time by day, the further they spell without a paycheck,” Duffy told “Fox News Sunday."
And helium prepared Americans for what they could look during the engaged Thanksgiving holiday.
“As I look 2 weeks out, arsenic we get person to Thanksgiving travel, I deliberation what’s going to hap is you’re going to person aerial question dilatory to a trickle arsenic everyone wants to question to spot their families,” Duffy said.
With “very few” controllers working, "you’ll person a fewer flights taking disconnected and landing" and thousands of cancellations, helium said.
“You’re going to person monolithic disruption. I deliberation a batch of aggravated Americans. I deliberation we person to beryllium honorable astir wherever this is going. It doesn’t get better,” Duffy said. "It gets worse until these aerial postulation controllers are going to beryllium paid.”
The authorities has been abbreviated of aerial postulation controllers for years, and aggregate statesmanlike administrations person tried to person retirement-age controllers to stay connected the job. Duffy said the shutdown has exacerbated the problem, starring immoderate aerial postulation controllers to velocity up their retirements.
“Up to 15 oregon 20 a time are retiring,” Duffy said connected CNN.
Duffy said Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth texted him with an connection to lend subject aerial postulation controllers, but it’s unclear whether the unit is certified to enactment connected civilian systems.
Duffy denied Democratic charges that the formation cancellations are a governmental tactic, saying they were indispensable owed to expanding near-misses from an overtaxed system.
“I needed to instrumentality enactment to support radical safe,” Duffy said. “I’m doing what I tin successful a messiness that Democrats person enactment successful my lap.”
Airlines for America, a commercialized radical representing U.S. carriers, said aerial postulation power staffing-related delays exceeded 3,000 hours connected Saturday, the highest of the shutdown, and that staffing problems contributed to 71% of hold time.
From Oct. 1 to Nov. 7, controller shortages person disrupted much than 4 cardinal passengers connected U.S. carriers, according to Airlines for America.
