More than 1,000 Saturday flights were canceled and thousands more were delayed as the Federal Aviation Administration reduced air traffic at airports across the country due to the government shutdown, creating chaos for travelers.
The shutdown has dragged on for a record 39 days, meaning air traffic controllers have not been paid for over a month.
To reduce the “immense strain and fatigue” on the federal workers as some of the busiest holiday travel days approach, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced Thursday that 40 airports would be forced to cut flight capacity. Flights were reduced by 4 percent Friday. Airports are bracing for next week, when the FAA said reductions will ramp up to 6 percent by November 11, 8 percent by November 13, and 10 percent by November 14.
On Saturday, travelers were already left scrambling. More than 6,000 flights in the U.S. faced disruptions, according to FlightAware, as ground stops and delays plagued travel hubs. Though some of the delay were likely to due to weather or other issues.
“I will EMPLOY EVERY TACTIC to keep the flying public safe,” Duffy wrote on X Friday. “Flights will be delayed, and trips will get canceled. But the skies will remain safe.”
Even after the government shutdown ends, Duffy warned it could take time before operations will return to normal. He predicted it would be “days, if not a week, before we get back to full-force flights,” he said Saturday to Fox News.
North Carolina’s Charlotte Douglas International Airport — the sixth busiest airport in the world — topped the list for the highest number of canceled flights, with 67 cancellations Saturday alone.
The disruptions have led to angry passengers.
“Everyone is saying this is the new America,” Marietta Hamilton, who was planning on traveling from Charlotte to Houston, told the Charlotte Observer. “We have to adjust and who knows what to expect next. It’s very inconvenient for the American people. We have enough stress with everything that’s going on, and these types of things just add to our stress and mental health.”
Gino Carr repeatedly checked his emails throughout the night before heading to the airport Friday morning to head to a Mexico and Bahamas cruise. “Every time I got a ding, I was a little worried that they were canceling my flight,” he told the Charlotte Observer.
“It’s kind of terrible that the government can’t get its act together and open it up,” he said. “All of these [federal workers] are basically working for free, and now there are plenty of people who are going to be stranded.”
An hour-long ground stop at the Charlotte airport Saturday also added to the mayhem. The afternoon saw ground stops at Nashville International Airport and Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey due to staffing shortages.
The FAA also issued ground delays at several travel hubs across the country due to staffing issues.. San Francisco International Airport, Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, New York’s LaGuardia Airport, and Chicago O'Hare International Airport were among the impacted hubs.
Jade Vardi was forced to rebook her canceled flight from Milwaukee to O’Hare. “I’m frustrated,” the 29-year-old told the Chicago Sun-Times.
Despite her irritation, she expressed sympathy for the air traffic controllers: “If I wasn’t getting paid, I wouldn’t want to work either.”
The sentiment is a common one.
Jill Hess, who was traveling from Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport to New York, told CBS12: "There's no reason for the military, the federal police, the air traffic controllers not to be paid. They should not pay Congress and maybe things would get done."
"The hope is that our airplane will be somewhat on time and get us to where we need to go, which is Westchester," Hess said.
"Inconvenience, yes, irritation, no. I tend to go with the flow. I don't get upset about things I have no control over and I have no control over this," Hess added.
Along with commercial aircraft, private jets have also been reduced, Duffy said.
"We've reduced their volume at high traffic airports — instead having private jets utilize smaller airports or airfields so busy controllers can focus on commercial aviation. That's only fair," he said in a Saturday social media post.
"Jets used for medical transports, emergencies and law enforcement will be prioritized," the Transportation Secretary added.
Meanwhile, Hawaii's Department of Transportation wrote Duffy a letter asking for that the state be exempt from flight cuts, citing its "unique reliance on air travel" for access to medical services, cargo movement and food security, national defense and military family support, as well as economic stability.
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