Flight Cancellations Disrupt Travel With No Relief In Sight

Air travelers across the country faced more frustration Tuesday as busy U.S. airports need to meet a higher Federal Aviation Administration target for reducing flights.

Airports have cancelled thousands of flights to scale back demands on the nation’s aviation system during the government shutdown. Absences and signs of stress among traffic controllers, who haven't been paid in over a month, made it imperative to cut flights in the name of public safety, the FAA said. The FAA last week ordered domestic airlines to drop 4 percent of their flights at 40 major U.S. airports. Smaller airports are also affected by the order due to the cancellation of connecting flights from major hubs.

More than 9,000 flights have been canceled since Friday, and the FAA said its goal for Tuesday was to cut 6 percent of flights and 10 percent again on Friday. Nearly 13,500 flights had been delayed and nearly 1,600 had been canceled by midafternoon Tuesday, according to the flight tracking service FlightAware.

It’s unclear exactly how many additional flights would need to be canceled for the day, but there are fewer flights scheduled on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

The average cancellation rate over the last few days already exceeded the FAA’s requirement, according to aviation analytics company Cirium. The FAA also expanded its flight restrictions Monday, barring business jets and many private flights from using a dozen airports already under commercial flight limits.

Controller shortages continued to lead to flight delays, including one of about five hours for arriving flights Monday evening at Chicago O’Hare International Airport, where wintry weather added to staffing-related disruptions earlier in the day.

The FAA warned that staffing at over a dozen towers and control centers could delay planes departing for Phoenix, San Diego, the New York area and Houston, among other cities.

Freezing weather in parts of the country on Tuesday could cause further delays and cancellations.

The Senate passed legislation Monday to reopen the government, but the bill still needs to clear the House and final passage could be days away.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy made clear last week that flight cuts will remain until the FAA sees safety metrics improve after staffing levels stabilize at its air traffic control facilities.

The FAA hasn’t put a timeline on when it will ease back on the flight limitations. Duffy says the cuts won’t go away until safety measurements improve and staffing levels stabilize at air traffic control facilities.

The flight restrictions have upended airline operations in just a matter of days. Many planes were rerouted and aren’t where they’re supposed to be. That could slow the airlines’ return to business as usual even after the FAA lifts the cuts, said Mike Taylor, an analyst with J.D. Power.

Duffy has declined to share the specific data that prompted FAA to imposed the flight cuts last week, but he told Fox News on Tuesday that he was seeing reports of loss of separation between aircraft in the air, more runway incursions and airline pilots telling the FAA they were concerned with the responses they were getting from controllers.

The nationwide shortage of air traffic controllers isn’t new, but the shutdown exposed just how fragile the system is. Controllers who weren’t being paid have increasingly called off work during the shutdown, citing increased stress and the need to take side jobs to pay bills. Union leaders said this week that the number of controllers who retired or quit during the shutdown was “growing” by the day.

It’s unclear how quickly controllers might be paid once the shutdown ends — it took more than two months to receive full back pay after the 35-day shutdown that ended in 2019, said Nick Daniels, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association.

President Donald Trump took to social media on Monday to pressure controllers to “get back to work, NOW!!!” He called for a $10,000 bonus for those who’ve stayed on the job and suggested docking pay for those who haven’t.

Daniels said the shutdown has made controllers’ demanding jobs even more stressful, leading to fatigue and increased risks. He said the number who are retiring or quitting is “growing” by the day.

The Associated Press contributed reporting.