Flight delays to increase in the USA as controllers to miss paychecks
Sunday, 26 Oct, 2025
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The U.S. government shutdown hit Day 26 with no deal in sight as the Senate stands adjourned for the weekend. And it increasingly affect air transport in the United States.
U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on Friday said he expects more flights to be delayed, with air traffic controllers set to miss their first paycheck as a federal government shutdown enters its 24th day.
Some 13,000 air traffic controllers and about 50,000 Transportation Security Administration officers must work without pay as the government shutdown continues; Controllers will miss their first full paycheck on the coming Tuesday, reports news agency Reuters.
“I think as we get closer to Tuesday and then after, I think you’re going to see far more disruption,” Duffy said on Fox News’ “America Reports.”
The state of air safety has been closely watched for signs of worsening delays or cancellations. Anything that shows the shutdown is making life harder for Americans could pressure lawmakers to break the deadlock.
Airlines are bracing for more disruptions
Republicans including Duffy blame Democrats for not reopening the government. The official website of the White House mentions in a communication that “as air traffic controllers and TSA agents work without paychecks and widespread flight disruptions threaten to upend holiday travel, Democrats’ shameful refusal to end their destructive government shutdown is plunging the U.S. aviation system into chaos.“
In return, Democrats say it is President Donald Trump and Republicans who refuse to negotiate over health care subsidies that expire at the end of the year. Democratic Representative Rick Larsen said to Reuters that Republicans should negotiate. “Controllers should never have to wonder where they will find money to pay their mortgage or put food on the table,” Larsen said.
National Air Traffic Controllers Association President Nick Daniels said at a press conference in Philadelphia that controllers are under immense stress and some are taking second jobs to pay their bills.
The shutdown “leads to an unnecessary distraction, and they cannot be 100% focused on their jobs, which makes this system less safe,” Daniels said. “We didn’t start a shutdown. We don’t end the shutdown — our elected officials do. And our message is simple — end the shutdown today.“
About 6.6% of flights delayed on October 23, 2025 were due to air traffic controller absences. This is slightly above the normal 5%. It is however much lower than the 53% seen on prior days during the shutdown, the Transportation Department said.
On Thursday, the FAA said air traffic control staffing issues forced it to delay travel at airports in New York, Washington, Newark and Houston.
In 2019, during a 35-day shutdown, the number of absences by controllers and TSA officers rose as workers missed paychecks, extending wait times at some airport check points. Authorities had to slow air traffic in New York and Washington.
The FAA is about 3,500 air traffic controllers short of targeted staffing levels. Many had been working mandatory overtime and six-day weeks even before the shutdown. According to the White House, “every week the shutdown drags on, $1 billion in travel-related spending is lost.”
(Sources: Reuters- The White House)
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